Section Eight
by Terry Gibbs
Summary: While on a case, Gibbs and the team run across a group of mercenaries that have connections to the team that go far beyond the current case. Tony!Kidfic TeamFamily COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This story popped into my head the other day and won't leave me alone, so here we are. I don't own NCIS.

Chp. 1

Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Brentwood Apartments

September 8, 2010

0900 hours

The apartment was sparsely furnished, but neat and orderly just the same. Its' single occupant lay snoring on the bed in the one bedroom, when the cellphone on the nightstand next to the bed vibrated. One eye crack open and the man growled in irritation. When the vibrating continued, he grabbed the device and said, "Whoever this is, it better be important."

"Now Sonny is that any way to greet your favorite uncle?" a gravelly voice asked.

The man in the apartment grinned and reached for a pack of _Grenadier _cigars, removing one from the pack and lighting it before responding. "Don't tell me you're still smoking those cheap cigars? I'd of thought probie taught you better."

"Come Mike, you didn't call me at oh nine hundred hours to give me crap about my smoking habits, did you? Because if you did, I'm gonna hang up this phone and get back to the very nice dream I was having."

Laughter could be heard on the southern end of the phone. "We need to meet." Mike Franks said soberly.

"Ok, where."

"D.C." Franks said.

There was a long pause before the voice in North Carolina said, now with an edge. "I don't do D.C., Mike. You know that."

"I know, Jake, I know. But it can't be helped."

The man named Jake sighed and asked, "When and where." Franks told him and there was a _click, _and dead air.

Former Army Special Forces Sergeant Jacob 'Jake' Gibbs sighed and through his feet over the bed. He stood and stretched, then dropped to the floor, crank out a hundred pushups and sit ups. Then he grabbed a set of sweat and threw them on along with well worn running shoes. Next he went to one corner of the room and opened his gun safe. There were several options and Jake selected a Glock 36 .45ACP sub compact pistol, placing the weapon in a holster on his left ankle.

Jake shook his head as he locked up his apartment and started his run. The truth was that he didn't need a weapon, but old habits were hard to break. As his feet pounded out the familiar route, Jake reflected on his life.

The son of a marine sniper who was now a federal agent, Jake supposed his path in life he been preordained. His life had been normal…until…

Until the day it wasn't anymore.

At eighteen, Jake had enlisted in the Army as an eighteen X-ray. This military occupational specialty, or MOS gave candidates the right try out to train to become a Green Beret. It was the toughest experience Jake had ever gone through, but he thrived. He served six years as a Green Beret 18 Bravo, or weapons sergeant and during that time he been in combat six times. Then a recruiter from the super secretive Counter Terrorism Unit known as Delta Force had come calling. If Jake thought being a green beret was tough Delta upped the ante considerably. He stayed with Delta for the remainder of his army career, another eight years. He retired at age thirty two. As his retirement date approached, Jake wondered if he was doing the right thing and even considered staying with the army until he was simply too old or he was wounded or killed in action. But then a CIA case officer he'd worked with in the past approached him with a job offer. To form a mercenary unit that would perform deniable operations, with no ties to the U.S. government and be paid in cash for their efforts. Jake needed only to ask where he needed to sign and that had been the genesis of Section eight. As he turned the corner and his apartment came into view, he wondered what the mission Mike had for them and why he insisted they meet in Washington, D.C.


	2. Introduction and Choices

Disclaimer: See Chp. 1

A/N: Lt. This one's for you, sir. Enjoy

Chapter 2

Abraham Lincoln Elementary School

Alexandria, Va.

September 8, 2010

1030 hours

Shannon Gibbs was enjoying a rare moment of peace and quiet. Although she loved teaching and her students, she just wasn't as young as she used to be. During her planning period, like now, she kept her cellphone on her desk, rather than in her purse. But she rarely received calls during the school day, so she was surprised when it rang. Snatching it up, she answered pleasantly, without checking the number. "Hello, this is Shannon Gibbs."

"Shannon? Mike Franks', how you and the probie?"the voice said, though Shannon recognized it immediately, and smiled.

"We're good, Mike, and you?"

"Beers cold, sun's shinin', fish are bitin'. Couldn't be better if I were twins."Mike said, chuckling. But the laughter held no mirth. _Maybe this wasn't been a good idea._

"That's good. Did you call to ask to steal my husband?" Shannon asked.

"No, Shannon, I didn't." Mike said, his tone serious now.

Shannon felt a knot forming in her stomach. "What happened? Is Jake alright? Where is he? What…."

_Aw, Crap. Probies' gonna kill me_. "Now, hold on, Shan, calm down honey. I wouldn't be given ya news like that over the phone. Jake's fine. I convinced him to meet me in D.C. If you and probie wanna come, I think I can swing it."

A long silence followed. Mike waited patiently. He owed this woman that much. Finally, she said. "You're giving him _another _job." She said. It was a statement, not a question.

Mike groaned inwardly, but he couldn't lie to her. "Yes, Shannon."

"And if my son dies?"

Mike was losing patience. "Look, Shannon, I didn't call to argue with you. I called to ask you if you wanna see him."

Another silence followed and Shannon checked the clock on the wall. 1043 hours. She had seven minutes. Part of her wanted to see her son again, wanted desperately to hug him and tell him how wrong she had been. But she couldn't. It'd been too long.

"No, Mike, I can't."

For his part, Mike didn't react. He didn't sigh, curse or tell this women that he loved like a daughter what a fool she was being. Instead, he said. "Alright. Goodbye Shannon."

"Goodbye, Mike. Don't be stranger." She added, almost as an afterthought.

Mike grinned, but there was no mirth in his smile. "You either. Goodbye, Shannon."

000

15 Miles North of Fayetteville, NC

Same Day

1100 Hours

Jake arrived at Section Eight's unofficial headquarters and sat in his truck, a '71 Ford F-150, and wondered what his teammates would think about his request. Normally, their agency contact called Mike, Mike called him. Then they met, sometimes in Mexico and sometimes in the states, and Mike gave him the Section's assignment. But this time was different.

This time, Jake smelled a rat. And the rat was Michael Franks. Why, of all the places he could've chosen to give Jake the teams assignment, did he choose D.C.? After a dozen reasons other than the most obvious one pushed into his mind, he gave it up and decided to just let it out for his team. He parked next to a black Jeep wrangler and got out. He saw that a Harley Davidson Blackline and a fully restored dark blue '67 Camaro SS with white racing stripe were parked next to the jeep. Good, his team was in place.

He entered 'the bar' as they called it found Travis McGee, Max Sciuto, and Dave Mallard sitting around the room's lone table, all nursing beers. "Want one, boss?" Travis asked.

"Sure." Jake said, removing his coat and revealing a Wilson Combat CQB Tactical LE 1911 .45 caliber pistol, cocked and locked on his belt. Like Jake, Travis McGee was a U.S. army Special Forces veteran, but he'd remained a great beret for his entire career. Max Sciuto had been a Navy Seal, a member of Seal teams 2 and the venerable Seal team 6. Dave Mallard had been a member of Britain's SAS, specifically their counter terror unit.

Accepting the proffered Heineken from Travis, Jake took a long swig. "That bad?" Dave asked.

Jake shrugged. "Not necessarily bad," he shrugged again. "Just different."

"Different how?" Max asked, offering his boss a chair.

"Mike wants to meet in D.C."

All of a sudden, it was like the air had been sucked out of the room. For almost a minute the only sound was the collective breathing of the men. Finally Max said what they were all thinking. "Does he know?"

"Of course he knows." Jake said, his tone implying that the man was stating the obvious. "He investigated Kelly's murder, for Christ sake." Jake shook his head in disgust.

"So, let me guess, you want us there as back up?" Dave asked.

Jake grinned. That was why he liked the former SAS captain. The man was a quick study.

"Yeah, standard village people op. I need everybody in place around Charlie's by 1700" Jake said. Village People was team speak for cover i.d.'s in public. City workers, vagrants, people that wouldn't look out of place on a city street.

"Who do you want in the bar with you?" Travis asked.

"No body." Jake said. The others looked surprised; one of their steadfast rules was that you always went into a potentially hostile environment with a partner.

"No body." Jake said again, finality in his voice.

"I've been the homeless man for the last two ops," Sciuto grumbled.

"So," Jake said, shrugging. "You're good at it?"

The former Seal sighed dramatically. "Fine. But this Op better pay well."

Jake clapped his friend on the shoulder. "Thanks, Max. I owe you."

"I expect of case of Dos Equis on my doorstep by 0700 tomorrow." Max growled.

"Your wish is my command. Now go get dirty."

000

Shannon walked to the art room in a daze. The question that Mike had asked still plagued her. Did she really _not _want to contact her son? The simple answer was that she didn't know. But what she did know was that _she _not Jake was to blame for their estrangement, and that irrefutable fact broke her heart. As she turned the corner, she schooled her features to look normal. Kids were perceptive. She'd learned that the hard way.

"Ok, Tony Dinozzo, front and center." She said. The kids were milling around waiting for the order to line up. As a general rule, Shannon avoided favorites in her class. Oddly enough, this had been simplified by her daughter's death twenty-three years earlier. All her kids were special. But Tony was different.

Tony was one those kids that she wanted to scoop up and tell him everything was going to be ok, then take him home and make everything ok. Tony came from a wealthy family but Shannon got the impression that his father hated him and that nothing Tony ever did was good enough. She didn't know what his mother's views were because she'd never met the woman.

Suddenly Tony appeared, bright eyed and smiling. "Ready Tony?"

"Yes, ma'am." He beamed, "all present and accounted for."

She smiled at him. "Ok, then. Guys, stay behind Tony, OK?" When she was sure she had their attention. Shannon started down the hall, glancing back to make sure the kids were staying together. But Tony was doing a job. She made a mental know to give him the praise he deserved. And to make sure that the little boy understood that he was, in fact, loved.

000

A/N: I know what you're all thinking. How in the world did Gibbs son end up working with Abby and McGee's brothers and Ducky's nephew? Highly unlikely, right? Well that, gentle reader, is the beauty of Fanfiction. I get to do what I want! Hope you enjoyed it.


	3. Information and a target

Disclaimer: See chp. 1

A/N: Lt., thanks for the reviews, sir! Barbarina, Mc7ism, readergirl99 and yathink1123, thanks for the story alerts. Mike's daughter-in-law and granddaughter are mentioned in this chapter.

Chp. 3

Charlie's Bar

September 8, 2010

1930 hours

Jake sat in rear booth, facing the door and nursing a Heineken as he waited for Mike to show. Max was down the street, in full homeless man getup, Travis was in a utility truck and Dave was dressed in a suit, currently making his way slowly down Market street, Charlie's being his ultimate destination.

Suddenly, Jake heard a voice over the earpiece he was wearing. "Head's up, Jake. Franks' coming your way." Travis said.

Jake didn't respond, and focused on the door more intently. Sure enough, Mike walked in a minute later. He made eye contact with Jake, then went to the bar and ordered a drink before coming to the booth. The two men shook hands guardedly.

"Jake, how ya been son?"

"Good, Mike. You?"

"Amira run's this old man ragged, but she keeps me young." Mike said with a smile.

Jake smiled as well. He was happy that his friend found a new lease on life. "So, I noticed your boys outside. Lot of muscle for a meet."

Jake shrugged. "I had to be certain, Mike. You know that."

Mike shook his head. "You know, that's what pisses me off. You're worse than probie."

Jake glared. "Your precious _probie _tossed me away like I was old news. Blamed me for something I had no control over." Jake said, looking away.

"Yeah, well, for the record, your mother decided she didn't want to come."

"There you go." Jake said, taking a swig from the bottle.

"Jake, come on, it's been almost twenty years since you saw or for all I know, even contacted your parents. Don't you think that's punishment enough?"

"Mike, I didn't come here to discuss my life choices. I came here for intel." Jake said, icily.

"Fine, junior." Mike said, removing an envelope from his jacket and passing it across the table.

Jake took the envelope and got up from the table. As he was walking away, Mike grabbed his arm. For a second, the two men stared at each other. "I had a son that I didn't meet him 'til he was already grown. Then he was killed in Iraq. Amira's father. But my point is, at least I knew what happened. If you die on one of these ops, you think the agency's gonna call your parents and say, 'oh, by the way, your son was killed while working for us.'

"I'm surprised you think they'd care. See ya around, Mike." Jake said. Mike didn't try to stop him, because he knew there was nothing he could do.

000

Jake walked quickly back to his truck, parked two blocks away. Once he reached it, he radioed his team to pull out. Then he headed south on I-95, toward Fayetteville. Try as he might, Jake couldn't get the meet out of his mind. By the time he was driving through Richmond, he knew he'd screwed the pooch. That he should've listened to Mike. But he couldn't go back now. Or could he? He pushed the past from his mind and forced himself to focus on the present and who his target might be.

000

Gibbs Residence

Same Day

2110 hours

"Thanks for coming, Mike. I'm sorry about earlier. I just…" Shannon didn't say anything else, placing a coffee cup in front of Franks.

"You're welcome, Shannon; and don't worry about it. Where's probie? Oh, wait, work."

Shannon grinned and sat across from him. "You guessed it. How is he?"

"Jake's," Mike tried to come up with the right word, but couldn't think of anything.

"A younger version of Jethro." Shannon supplied.

Mike nodded. "Yeah, that's about it. Come on, let's take a drive."

Shannon looked surprised. "Where are we going?"

"I'll tell you in the car."

000

They took her car and Mike instructed her to drive north. "Alright, Mike, why the cloak and dagger?"

"'Cause your house might be bugged and…" he trailed off.

"And I figured you deserved to know what Jake's into."

"Into?" Shannon asked, worry in her voice.

Mike sighed. This hadn't been one of his better idea's, but she was probie's wife and that made her family. 'nough said.

"Jake left the army two years ago. The CIA recruited him to form Section Eight." Mike held up a hand to forestall any questions. "They'll a kill squad. No ties to the agency."

"That's where you come in. You're a go between."

Mike sighed. "Yeah, Jake said the only way he'd do it is if they gave him a handler that he trusted implicitly. I agreed. Figured I owed you and Jethro that much."

Shannon was silent for a minute, then she smiled. "Thanks, Mike."

000

Sitting on his couch in the relative safety of his apartment, Jake removed the photo and dossier of section eight's next target. What he saw surprised him. He'd never expected to have this man in his cross hairs, but he supposed the powers that be were done with him. The photograph and dossier were for one Anthony Dinozzo, Sr., billionaire defense contract.

000

A/N: How's that for a plot twist? By the way, Lt. I hope you don't mind me borrowing Charlies'. Shoulda asked first, sorry.


	4. Developements

A/N: You all can thank Lt. for the quick updates. He reminded me in a review reply to 'El Viejo', his excellent Mike Franks-centric fic, that section eight is army slang for a 'psycho' discharge. So, after getting his review in my in-box just before eight this morning, this chapter's marinated in my brain all day and this is what I came up with. By the way, go check out 'El Viejo", it's really good and Lt. knows his stuff!

Chp. 4

15 Miles North of Fayetteville, NC

September 15, 2010

0730 hours

For the past week, the members of Section Eight had been gathering further intelligence on their current target and trying to determine the best way to take him out. Jake sent others home a few hours ago. He sacked out around 1AM after reading the same page five times. Growling as his hip vibrated, he pulled his cell phone from its holster. "What?"

"Boss," Travis said. "We got problems. I'm on my way there now. I'll fill you in when I get there."

_When don't we have problems? Jake thought._ He sat up and rubbed his face, in an effort to wake himself. He stood, stretch and went to the shower room. The place had a bunk room and kitchen as well. Sometimes the team lived there for weeks while planning ops.

The irony of Section Eight's designation wasn't lost on Jake and, his team got lots of laughs out it. They all had honorable discharges from their respective branches of service. A Section Eight discharge, at least in Army slang, meant that a person was 'mucho loco'. Section Eight was part of ten 'section's' scattered throughout the U.S., and the world that the government could call on at a moment's notice for 'deniable' missions. They might be expendable, but they were paid ten times what regular service men and women were.

As Jake showered, he wondered what McGee's problem was. He knew the man wouldn't have called him unless it was serious. Deciding the worrying about it wouldn't help, he threw the temperature to cold and stayed under it for a count of thirty seconds, then turned of the shower. He toweled off quickly and dressed even faster in a t-shirt, jeans and hiking boots. Then he went to the kitchen and got coffee going, and grabbed a box of power bars from one of cabinets.

"Mornin' boss." Travis said, as he walked in. He grabbed two cups and filled them with black coffee, handing one to his boss before taking a sip of his own. Both men drank in silence as Jake waited for his friend to speak.

Finally, Travis pushed off the cabinet and, grabbing a power bar from the box, left the room. "Dinozzo has a kid." Travis finally said.

Jake rubbed his face and sighed. "You woke me up to tell me our target has a kid?" Jake asked, his tone incredulous. "_All _our targets have kids, wives too."

"Just look at this." Travis said, handing his boss a sheaf of papers, not taking offense to Jake's tone.

Jake studied the top sheet. "Class roster. Abraham Lincoln Elementary." He read aloud. _Odd, why not send the kid to a private school? He's got the money for it, obviously. _

"Why…" Jake started to ask, but Travis cut him off.

"That's not it." Travis said, knowing what Jake was thinking. "Keep reading."

Jake did. He started at the top of the page. _Anthony Dinozzo, Jr. 2__nd__ Grade. Homeroom teacher:…._

_Shannon Gibbs. Shannon Gibbs. _

Travis watched the change in his boss' face, and nodded. "Yeah, that's what I couldn't tell you over the phone."

000

NCIS - HQ

Washington Navy Yard

Washington, D.C.

0930 hours

Ziva David watched her team leader, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, leave to make his umpteenth coffee and once she was sure he was gone, sighed and laid her head on her desk.

"Late night, Ziva?" Kate asked, grinning.

"No," Ziva mumbled, not bothering to raise her head. "I am just sick of _cold cases_."

"Oh, I don't know." Tim said. "It's better than some of places we've been."

Before either of the women could respond, Gibbs appeared, from nowhere. "Gear up!"

"What's up?" Kate asked as they walked to the elevator.

"Suspected child abuse." Gibbs growled.

000

Abraham Lincoln Elementary School

Alexandria, Va.

Two hours earlier

Shannon was on carpool duty, something teachers normally loathed, but she enjoyed it. Naturally a morning person, she was at her best this time of day. She saw a black limousine pull the curb and stop a hundred yards away, and felt a feeling she couldn't explain wash over her. Forcing herself to focus, she turned back to the line of cars and arriving children. A few minutes passed and she forgot about the car, or tried to anyway. Limousines were a dime a dozen in D.C., so it could have been anyone. But she couldn't shake the feeling of dread that washed over her when she saw the car. Then she felt a tug at her sleeve and turned, automatically looking down. "Mrs. Gibbs?"

"Yes, Michele?" she asked, her face matching the little girl's look of concern.

"It's Tony." The girl said, by way of explanation. Automatically, Shannon glanced where the car she'd seen had been then, as if on autopilot, her eyes looked toward a knot of kids. Knowing something was wrong without having to ask, Shannon moved quickly and saw Tony leaning against the wall, surrounded by kids. Moving to him, Shannon knelt down and forced herself to stay calm. "Tony, hey buddy, you ok?"

"H..hi, Mrs. Gibbs." Tony said, kindly. But she noticed that he practically had to force his mouth to move.

"Hi, honey." Shannon said, smiling. She felt his forehead. _He's on fire!_

"Tony…Tony, open your eyes sweetie."

"Mommy…" Tony moaned. Shannon grinned self consciously, despite the tenor of the situation. Then she felt him go limp and caught him before he hit the wall. Without worrying about scaring the other kids or potential sexual harassment lawsuits that could be brought about by potentially inappropriate physical contact, she picked Tony up and yelled at one of the other teachers across the way. "JANICE, CALL 911!"

000

A/N: So, how was it?


	5. No Answers

A/N: I recognize the whole 'NCIS investigating a civilian child abuse case' that started in last chapter looks a bit odd, but all will be explained in this chapter. Lt., thanks for the review and the PM. Mc7ism – thanks for your reviews.

Terms:

**DoD: Department and Defense **

Chp. 5

15 miles north of Fayetteville, NC

September 15, 2010

1000 hours

Jake could feel bile rising in his throat, and it had everything to do with the team's current assignment. He could think of a million and one ways this op could go FUBAR, and pronto. "So, your mother's _potentially_ involved." Max said. "I don't see what the issue is."

"Travis and I did some more checking in light of what he told me. Dinozzo's not so clean, after all."

"How do you mean?" Dave asked.

Jake hesitated, trying to keep his rising rage from boiling over. "Dinozzo abuses the kid. Not just physically." He finally said.

"All the more reason to end this bastard," Dave growled.

The other three nodded. Before the conversation could continue, Jake's phone vibrated.

000

Abraham Lincoln Elementary

Same day

1 hour earlier

Gibbs knew deep down that NCIS would likely have no jurisdiction in this case, but his wife wouldn't have called him if it wasn't serious. He could at least see if there was anything he could do to help.

When the team arrived, he saw several government sedans already there, and picked Tobias Fornell out of a cluster of agents. _Odd, but not unheard of. _

He got out of the car and walked to the group, followed closely by his team. Fornell extricated himself from the group and made his way over to them. "What's up, Tobias?" Gibbs asked.

"It's a bad one, Jethro. All the way around, emotionally, physically, politically."

Gibb's brow furrowed. The first two he could understand. But political implications in a child abuse case? If this was a high brow private school, ok. But...it wasn't.

At the perplexed look on his friend's face, the FBI agent said, "Shannon's asking for you."

Gibbs turned to his team. "Sit tight." Then he followed Fornell into the building.

McGee turned to Kate. Prior to joining NCIS, she had been a Secret Service agent, and would likely know how this case could be politically sensitive.

"I've been out two years, but I can't think of anyone with political ties who sent their children here." Kate said, answering the unasked question.

"Doesn't Shannon teach here?" Ziva asked.

McGee and Kate both looked at the sign with school's name on it, then nodded. "Yeah, she does." McGee said, realization dawning on all of them at the same time. They didn't need to say more. Shannon was family. That was reason enough for them to be here.

000

Once they were inside the school, Tobias pulled Jethro into an unused office and closed and locked the door. "So, what's up, Tobias?"

"Before she called you, Shannon called the Alexandria PD and filed a report of child abuse against Anthony Dinozzo, Sr., founder and CEO of Dinozzo Defense Systems. Given the sensitivity of the allegations, APD's chief called us."

Gibbs didn't say anything for several minutes. "So, why are we here?"

"As a buffer." Fornell said.

Gibbs nodded in response. It made sense, and it was a good plan. Dinozzo was a powerful man, used to getting his way. The FBI and NCIS couldn't investigate this case, not directly anyway, even though Dinozzo was affiliated with the DoD through his government contracts. But they could hamstring him and maybe save his child from more harm. Gibbs thought about it, then pulled out his cell phone. He pressed three on speed dial and several seconds passed before he was connected with NCIS Director Tom Morrow.

000

NCIS – HQ

Washington Navy Yard

Washington, D.C.

0900 hours

After being patched through to the director, Gibbs got to the point. "Care to explain this situation to me director?"

Morrow nodded on his end of the phone. "What did agent Fornell explain to you?"

"That we were to act as a buffer between Dinozzo and his kid."

"And did he inform you who accused Mr. Dinozzo of child abuse?"

Gibbs nodded, even though Morrow couldn't see him. "My wife. You'll forgive me Director, but this all seems way too hinky and I'm not getting that read from you, sir."

"Collect your team, your wife and the child. Come back to the yard and I'll explain everything, in person." Morrow said and hung up before Gibbs could respond. Then he turned to the men sitting in his two visit chairs, and sighed. "Gentlemen, I just hope you know what you're doing. Jethro's not a man to trifle with."

000

A/N: Hmm….major wonkyness + mystery guests. What oh what can it be? Review and find out.


	6. The world is Grey

A/N: Ok, I know this is kinda confusing, and not the most team-centric fic ever. But that's about to change. And the questions that keep mounting will be answered. Enjoy and thanks for reading, reviewing, favoriting, etc.

Chp. 5

15 Miles North of Fayetteville N.C.

September 15, 2010

1005 Hours

The other members of Section Eight watched as their leader got angrier the longer he stayed on the phone. "Mike, I'm not gonna say it again. We'll complete this mission, the same way we've completed every other mission. But we're not working with NCIS. Period. If that's their condition, we walk."

Mike was getting pissed off. "Dang it, Jake! This isn't about you and your issues! Knowing what you know, do you want Dinozzo dead? Do you want the satisfaction of ending his life yourself?"

Jake sighed. "You know I do, but…"

Mike cut him off. "No buts, Jake. This is your only option. We need ya, son."

Jake pinched the bridge of his nose in an effort to forestall his growing headache, and didn't say anything for several minutes. Mike waited patiently. Jake was a good kid and he would come around, he just needed time.

Finally he sighed and asked. "When and where?"

000

Georgetown University Hospital

Washington D.C.

Same Day

1035 Hours

Shannon held Tony's hand and ran her other hand through his hair, softly humming a lullaby that she somehow still remembered from happier times. The doctor's had concluded it was safe to give Tony pain medication and he'd been asleep for about thirty minutes, but Shannon couldn't bring herself to leave him.

She thought the worst of it was when he collapsed outside the school, but that paled in comparison to the scars all over his body. She'd had to force herself to remain in control, to not cry. But she'd wanted to. She wanted to still. Wanted to rage at a God who let innocent children be hurt…or even killed. Unable to stop it anymore, she let the tears she'd fought to hold at bay spill over she cheeks and run down her face.

She didn't know how much time passed, but suddenly she felt strong arms around her, holding her, protecting her. Without looking at the persons face, she turned around and buried her head in what she knew to be her husband's chest, weeping silent tears of grief for the child in the bed, the children she'd lost and for herself. After she calmed down, she pulled away and looked at him, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Sorry."

Gibbs didn't bother telling his wife that apologies were a sign of weakness because she was the strongest person he knew. "He'll be ok, Shannon. I promise."

"It's not that." Shannon said. "I was just thinking about Kelly…and Jake. I miss him, Jethro. I wis I could go back and slap the bitch that I was then and tell him how wrong I was."

Gibbs shook his head. They'd had this discussion more times than he could count, and frankly he was growing tired of it. "Shannon, I've told you. You were grieving, you didn't…" He sighed. "You didn't know what you were saying…you…" He stopped when she pointed at him, a fire in her eyes.

"Don't you dare!" she hissed, keeping her voice low because of the sleeping child, but no less intense. "Don't you dare try to justify what I did, Leroy Jethro Gibbs."

_Uh oh, now I've done it. _Gibbs raised his hands in surrender and backed away. For several minutes the only sounds in the room were the machines, the ticking clock and people breathing.

"I'm sorry." She said again, "It's just…I feel like I made him what he was."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow when she didn't continue. "Meaning?"

Shannon sighed. This was going to suck, plain and simple. "Mike called me at school yesterday. He calls every so often, just to let me know Jake's ok."

Gibbs nodded in understanding. "Me too."

Shannon didn't show it, but the revelation surprised her. She'd thought her husband had cut their son off even more so than she herself had. "Anyway, he said he convinced Jake to agree to meet him in D.C. to get an assignment. I knew that he'd done this before, but I didn't know who Jake was working for. Last night, he came by the house and we went for a drive. Jake's the leader of some unit called Section Eight. Mike said their…a kill squad." She finished, the last part said barely above a whisper, as if that would make it less true.

When he didn't respond, she continued. "So, you see, Jethro, I pushed Jake to do what he did."

Gibbs waited for a minute then slowly shook his head in the negative. "Shannon, Jake's thirty five years old. Whatever he's doing now, it was his choice. He wouldn't want you to blame yourself." Without warning, Gibbs stood, kissed her and left just as quickly as he'd come.

Shannon watched where his image had been moments before, and shook her head. She wasn't so sure she believed her husband.

NCIS – HQ

Washington Navy Yard

Washington, D.C.

Same Day

1125 hours

Gibbs stopped in front of Director Morrow's gatekeeper, Cynthia. "Director Marrow's expecting, Agent Gibbs."

"Who's with him?" Gibbs asked, curtly.

"He ordered me not to tell you." Cynthia said.

Gibbs glared at her, and she glared right back. When it appeared she wouldn't break, Gibbs turned and entered the Director's office. He was surprised to find not only NCIS Director Morrow, but also CIA Director Frank Alvarez and FBI Director Martin Hawkes.

"Agent Gibbs." Morrow said, "How's the boy?"

"Unknown, sir." Gibbs said. As usual, he would wait for the other men to reveal information.

"And your wife?" the director asked.

"Good, Sir. I left my team with them as protection detail." Gibbs said.

"Good, good." Morrow said. "You're probably wondering why I asked you here."

Gibbs shrugged. "The thought had crossed my mind."

"Agent Gibbs, It's come to our collective attention that Anthony Dinozzo Sr., CEO of Dinozzo Defense Systems, has been directly implicated in selling U.S. state defense secrets to Islamic radicals." CIA Director Alvarez answered.

"Al Qaeda?" Gibbs asked.

"Unknown."

"Where does my team fit in?" Gibbs asked, not liking where this was heading.

"Keep Dinozzo's son out of the crossfire." FBI Director Hawkes answered.

"What I'm about to tell you does not leave this room." Alvarez said, and turned to Morrow. Morrow picked up a remote control, pointed it at a plasma screen and pressed a button. Four pictures, along with dossiers appeared on the screen.

"The President," Alvarez said. "has been briefed on the situation and has authorized Dinozzo's assassination. The men you see on the screen on part of a group called Section Eight."

Gibb's felt his famous gut turn to ice, as he realized that he knew these men and that was why they had been chosen to carry out this mission. When he didn't speak, Morrow continued. "Section Eight is attached to your team until their mission is complete."

Gibbs shook his head, his face a mask of utter disgust. "Let me guess, they get paid whether Tony lives or not, right?"

"Agent Gibbs, when your son heard about Dinozzo's proclivities, he offered to kill him free of charge and so did his team." Alvarzez said. "Once they knew what had been happening to this little boy, the mission became just as personal to them as it is to you. I assure you, it's not about the money."

Gibbs felt his head swimming and fought to maintain his famous control. He was going to see his son again, whether he wanted to or not. "Where do we make contact?" he finally asked.

000

A/N: As Scooby Doo would say, "Rut Row!" I wouldn't want to be there when Gibbs and Jake meet. Perhaps I'll send Mike to play referee. Thanks for reading!


	7. Mission Prep, and Ghosts

A/N1: Disclaimer – see Chp. 1

Chp. 7

**Terms:**

'**snivel' gear: what soldiers call toiletries. **

**SFG: Special Forces Group, the main body to which a particular Special Forces team belongs.**

Jake's Apartment

Fort Bragg, North Carolina

September 15, 2010

1430 hours

Given his chosen path in life, Jake kept a 'go' bag backed at all times in his truck. The bag had enough clothing to last him two weeks. But he had a feeling that the current mission was going to last a heck of a lot longer than two weeks. So, he was repacking the bag with clothes and other 'snivel' gear. In addition to jeans, long sleeved shirts and a couple pairs of cowboy boots, Jake packed what had become, next to his guns, his most prized possessions.

As a former Special Forces soldier, Jake was fortunate, at least in his mind, to know what worked in the field and what didn't. In addition to clothes, he packed Blackhawk Warrior Wear integrated tourniquet cargo pants, a 5.11 Tactical Assault vest, Hard Time tactical gloves, a SERPA level 3 tactical light bearing holster and HRT Urban Assault boots. Then he moved to his weapons locker. Though he could afford to buy pretty much whatever he wanted, Jake wasn't one of those guys who bought something, just because and this was especially true when it came to weaponry. After opening the locker, he surveyed his options and though about what he would need. In addition to his Wilson 1911, he also owned Sig Suaer P220 .45 automatic and his Glock 36. As for long guns, Jake owned a Remington 1100 Tactical Shotgun and a Heckler and Koch 416 M-4 rifle. The shotgun had ghost ring night sights, but the M-4 was tricked out. Jake spared no expense where his primary weapon was concerned. He mounted an L-3 Eotech sight on his weapon, which allowed his to keep both eyes open while shooting, a must have in an tactical situation, with an L-3 3x magnifier in front of the sight to allow for 'reaching out and touching someone' as Jake referred to long distance shooting. Under the barrel, Jake had an M203 grenade launcher, also good for reaching out and touching someone, and blowing them to smithereens. Jake removed a Blackhawk industries Long Gun case from the safe and placed the weapon into it and zipped it up.

Jake turned back to the locker and reached for his last weapon, a Springfield Armory .308 caliber M-21 semiautomatic sniper rifle. His hand rested on the weapon for a long time before his removed it and placed in a hard Pelican gun case. Ever since Kelly's death, Jake had been ambivalent about sniper rifles. His team leader practically had to order him to attend sniper school and Jake fought the man tooth and nail before finally giving him a reason as to why he was so against being a sniper. It reminded him of his father, and he'd tried to put as much distance between himself and his family as humanly possible, psychologically anyway. After packing his weapons and ammunition, Jake made himself a sandwich for lunch and went over his target's biography one last time, as well as dossiers for Ziva David, Caitlin Todd and Timothy McGee. Jake cursed again when he thought about what Travis had discovered. Not that he faulted his teammate for being thorough. If you didn't check every detail of mission, then double and triple check said detail, you were just likely to buy the farm as your target was.

But, the fact that the MCRT was involved, no matter how minuscule their involvement, limited Section Eight's options, plain and simple. Besides, they weren't freakin' babysitters. They went in, did what needed doing, and faded away. Working with MCRT meant exposure, and exposure was equal to death in the covert ops world.

As he continued reading the team's dossier's though, something caught his eye. Ziva David had been, until six months ago, a liaison officer between NCIS and the Israeli Mossad. Now, she was a U.S. citizen and probationary NCIS Field Agent. Jake didn't care what the falling out between Ms. David and the Israeli's had been, she still had some of the best training in the world with regard to killing people. As he cleaned his dishes and fed the files into a shredder, Jake wondered how hard it would to convince Ziva David to return to 'the dark side.'

000

NCIS Safehouse

Fairfax, Virginia

Same day

1700 hours

Gibbs had briefed his team on the latest developments to the case after his meeting with director. They had all met Dave, Travis and Max, but had no about Jake. The team was like family and regular got together on Sunday's for brunch. Max and Travis brought Dave with them one time when they were invited. They'd tried to get Jake to come along, but he refused. Dave and Kate had struck a conversation and one thing lead to another. They were currently three dates into what, so far, was a nice relationship.

"I wonder why Gibbs never mentioned having a son." Kate said, more than a little hurt that the man she respected and saw as more than a boss wouldn't tell the people he worked with that he had a child. They all knew about Kelly, as the subject had come up one night after a particular tough case involving a dead child.

"Trust me, Kate. Probie had his reasons." Mike said. Mike had been in Dallas with Layla, Amira, and Camilla. It was vacation on sorts, but Mike had a sixth sense about his probie that extended to said probie's son. So, on his way to D.C. to meet Jake, he'd dropped 'his girls' as he called them, off in Dallas, just in case. Sure enough, when Gibb's had called him earlier that day to say it might be a good idea circle the wagons as Rule 44 was in play, Mike and company hopped on the first plain to D.C.

"So, you knew they were estranged?" She asked, and Mike nodded. _The way this is going, I need a drink…or six. _

"I investigated his daughter's murder in '91." Mike said, and continued before Kate had a chance to speak. "And that's all I'm sayin'. You want the story, agent Todd, you gotta ask Gibbs yourself. But, before you do, ask youself if you really wanna rip open old wounds that aren't any of your damn business."

000

U.S. Interstate 95 North

Same day

1445 hours

Around the same time Gibb's team was preparing the safehouse, Jake and the rest of Section Eight were making their way up I-95 at a leisurely pace. All four were dressed in jeans or cargo pants, hiking boots and plaid flannel shirts under tactical vests. Jake wore a battered dark brown bomber jacket to cover his vest and a faded San Diego Padre's cap was pulled down low over his eyes and he was trying to get some sleep. Emphasis on the word 'trying'. Memories of the most horrible day of his life flooded his mind unbidden.

_Sixteen year old Jake was at the park, playing a pickup game of basketball. He'd just scored and three pointer and won the game for his team. Drenched in sweat, he walked slowly to the water fountain and took a long drink. Then he glanced over at the swings, where his eight year old sister should be. But she wasn't there….._

_Two hours passed. Cops, MP's and regular citizens showed up to long for Kelly, but Jake was the one who found her. The M.E. said she'd been dead maybe an hour and a half. Up until that point, his parents hadn't had time to blame him. They'd been too worried. _

_Jake had delivered the horrible news. He'd tried to be strong, but who could be under such circumstances. "Mom…." Jake started, then stopped as he choked on the words. _

_Jake remembered his mother's wild eyed stared as if he'd seen it yesterday, and not nineteen years earlier. "What happened?" _

_Jake steeled himself and started again. "Kelly's dead." _

_No one said anything for several seconds, but they seemed like hours. Then it happened. Shannon closed what little distance there was between herself and her son, a feral look on her face. "YOU BASTARD!" She screamed, louder than Jake had ever heard and rapped her hands around his throat. "You let my baby die!"_

With a start, Jake's eyes snapped open and he sat up, the cap falling from his face. The team didn't say anything, because they knew what the nightmare had been. Jake'd had them before, more times than he, or they, could count.

And in the silence of the vehicle Jake wondered, not for the first, if he was making the right decision.

000

A/N2: There's at least part of Jake's back story. More to follow.

A/N3: I'll probably regret this but I will give a Scooby snack in the form of whatever the reviewer wants to happen in the next chapter to whoever can tell me what rule 44 is. I know the right answer, by the way.


	8. Arrival

A/N: Disclaimer, See Chp. 1

A/N2: Great job to Ltjvt1026, Lidil, and yathink1123 for getting the right answer to my question. But y'all didn't make requests and take advantage of my offer. Oh well, hope ya like this chapter.

Chp. 8

I-95

Thirty miles south of Fairfax, Va.

1715 hours

Jake had taken over driving an hour earlier, and Max was navigating. As a rule, none of the team used GPS devices, as they made it easier for the enemy, or your government, to track you. "Turn left, Mill Creek Road."

Jake didn't bother to use his turn signal, and did as he was told. "Eight house on the right." Max said.

"Lots of open ground," Dave remarked, scanning the surroundings that passed the left side of the van.

"Good thing we brought rifles, then." Max said. The other three nodded, as Jake turned into a long driveway and stopped when a figure dressed in a brown trench coat appeared his headlights, armed raised in a universal, 'stop' gesture. Jake applied the break and rolled his window down. "Help you?" Jake asked.

"Special Agent Brent Langer, NCIS. Lemme see some I.D." Langer said, shining a flash light into the vehicle.

Jake handed Langer a set of fake DHS credentials and waited while the NCIS agent looked at them. "Special Agent Jacob Mason?" Langer asked, and Jake nodded.

"Their expecting you in the house. Park there." Langer said, handing the I.D. back and pointing to where several black SUV's were parked next to the house.

"Thanks." Jake said, before driving away.

"I love fake I.D.'s." Max said with a grin.

"Yeah, they do come in handy." Jake said, parking next to the last SUV and killing the engine. The team unloaded their gear and carried it inside. Just before they reached the front door, it opened.

000

Mike Franks watched the vehicle approach the house, then stopped at the two man checkpoint on the road. A minute passed before it continued up the drive and parked next to the other SUV's already there. Mike watched as the occupants unloaded their gear and started walking toward the house. He recognized Jake, but didn't know the rest of them. Deciding it would be best to head them off at the pass before things got the chance to go FUBAR, Mike opened the door and stepped out, being careful to keep his hands in sight. "Mike." Jake said, his tone neutral.

"Jake. Who's your team?"

Jake introduced his men, then asked, "Think you picked a big enough house?" Jake asked in sarcastic tone.

"It wasn't my idea. Director Morrow intervened." Mike said.

"So, NCIS is our client then?" Jake asked. Not that he really cared, it just seemed like a prudent question.

"Don't forget the FBI and CIA." Mike said.

Jake's brow furrowed. "Huh?"

Mike widened his stance and cross his arms over his chest, as if preparing himself for stormy seas. "They ambushed the gunny. Told him Section Eight was going to be attached to Gibbs team until the assignments complete."

Jake held up a hand, even though Mike wasn't talking. "Wait…wait, what the heck do you mean until the assignment's complete? How are they involved?"

Mike sighed heavily. "This morning your mother made a complaint against Anthony Dinozzo, Sr., accusing him of physically abusing his son." The look on Jake's face said he knew about the alleged abuse and that he, and his team, considered it another nail in Dinozzo Sr. coffin.

"She also called your father. NCIS and FBI are acting as your buffer."

"So, we're using a seven year old child as bait?" Jake asked, anger in his tone.

"If you wanna call it that yeah, Jake, we are. But I suspect it's more like we're makin' sure he doesn't get hurt anymore."

Jake looked away. This operation was so screwed up, on so many levels, that he was tempted to throw in the towel, give the money back and go home. But then he thought about Tony. He was just a kid. He hadn't asked to be treated the way he was by a man who was supposed to love him, protect him. In that moment, Jake made a decision. He wouldn't kill Anthony Dinozzo, Sr. for being a traitor to his country. He would kill him for abusing his son.

000

The team was just sitting down to dinner when Jake and company arrived. Well, most of them. Ziva and Kate were on watch at the front and rear of the house, respectively. Ziva watched from her position as Mike talked with the man she guessed was the leader of Section Eight. It was easy to pick him out because she'd met the other members of Section Eight before. The man reminded her of a younger version of Gibbs, in the way he carried himself. She noted the holster strapped to his thigh and the tactical vest visible under his jacket. She also saw that all four men were wearing pistols and she surmised that the bags and cases they carried undoubtedly carried potentially leather objects. "We've got positions on all sides of the house and guys at the front and back. You can leave you gear in here." Mike said as the men entered, pointing to the room where Ziva was standing watch. Mike, Dave and Travis all walked in first, with Jake uncharacteristically taking the rear. After the others said hello to Ziva, Jake said, "You guys get some chow. I'll take first watch." The others nodded in understanding and turned to follow Mike to the dining room. Jake thought Mike might make a stink about his choice but, surprisingly, he kept his mouth shut.

Ziva stepped forward and extended her hand. "Ziva David; pleased to meet you." She said, and Jake could tell she meant it. Her tone wasn't the stiff, clipped one that usually accompanied Mossad operatives and her touch was surprisingly warm.

"Jake Gibbs, same to you, Officer David."

"I am no longer with Mossad." Ziva said, apologetically.

"Sorry, intel most be old."

Ziva looked surprised. "You collected intelligence on our team?"

Jake shook his head in amazement. "That surprises you?" Jake asked, incredulously. Then before she could say anything, he continued. "I always like to know who I work with." Jake said, as he laid his gun case on the table and removed his M-4. After taking off his jacket, he slung the weapon on his shoulder and brought it up, making sure the sights lined up and were as he'd last left them. Finding everything as it should be, he let the rifle hang from the sling, but kept his hand on the pistol grip.

"Good to know." Ziva said. "That is an excellent weapon. A Heckler and Koch 416, correct?"

Jake nodded, impressed. "You know your weapons."

"So, is Gibbs still the same bastard he always was?" Jake asked, in an effort to keep the conversation going.

Ziva looked like she wanted to slap him and, for a second, he felt bad. "Sorry." He apologized.

Ziva shook her head. "My own father wasn't the most warm and affectionate."

Sensing that the topic of father's and parents in general wasn't something Jake wanted to talk about, Ziva asked about his military career. He gave her information that he felt certain she already knew, but he was thankful for the lack of questions regarding his estrangement from Gibbs and Shannon. He hoped the rested of his father's team would respond in kind. If he was lucky, he could complete this mission and just fade away.

000

A/N3: Ok, who can tell me what episodes Special Agent Langer appeared in? Also, I mentioned that Dave and Kate are dating in the last chapter. How would y'all feel about me exploring a relationship between Jake and Ziva? Opinions appreciated!


	9. Troubles, part 1

A/N: Thanks for the responses regarding a relationship between Jake and Ziva.

Disclaimer: See Chp. 1

Chp. 9

NCIS Safehouse

September 15, 2010

1815 hours

Jake and Ziva had been on watch together for forty five minutes, and their conversation had fizzled fifteen minutes earlier. So, when Ziva saw Jake check his watch for the third time in as many minutes, so asked, "Do you have somewhere to be?"

Jake, who'd been watching the driveway intently, turned to her. "Huh?"

"I asked if you had somewhere to be. That is the third time you've checked your watch in the last fifteen minutes."

Jake didn't say anything, and when the silence became uncomfortable, Ziva cleared he throat. "Forgive me, it is none of my business. I'm sorry."

Jake snorted in disgust. "Saint Gibbs didn't tell you thats a sign of weakness." Jake said in an annoyed tone.

Ziva was taken aback by the obvious disrespect. She'd never seen anyone treat Gibbs this way. Well…that wasn't right. Plenty of people had treated Gibbs with disrespect, but it didn't make sense that it would come from his own son. But, then she thought about her relationship with her own father, and it all made sense. But at the same time, Gibbs was more of the father to her than the Director of Mossad had ever been and she couldn't stand by and let him by slandered this way.

Jake for his part, knew what Ziva was thinking but also knew he didn't want to talk about it. So, instead of waiting for her to ask a question, he said. "I don't have anywhere to be Ziva. I just didn't really want to take this assignment."

"Why is that?"

"Bad blood."

"Between you and your parents?" She asked, and he nodded.

Before they could say more, Max and Dave appeared in the doorway to relieve them.

000

"Newsflash, Mikey, I don't work for you!" Jake said harshly, but his words were controlled, due in large part to Mike's family sleeping upstairs. He'd been hoping to keep his parents at arm's length, complete his assignment and get paid. The contract on Vincent Dinozzo called for the members of Section 8 to be paid $100,000, each. He wasn't about to let a family feud screw that up. With this job, his personal net worth would be just shy of two million dollars. Not bad for government work. Mike had asked Jake to pick up Gibbs, Shannon and Tony from the hospital and bring them to the safehouse.

Mike ignored the slight and tried to talk sense into his protégé's hothead of a son. "You're right, Jake, you don't work for me. But NCIS, who you do work for," Mike said, looking the mercenary in the eye. "What'd you think they'd say if it came to light that you and your team could've have prevented the deaths of one of their agent's, his wife, and a child?"

Jake shrugged. "Dying's part of the job description?" Jake said, in a poor attempt at gallows humor. One look at Franks' face, however, told the former soldier he might have gone a little too far. Hold up his hands in surrender, Jake looked at his friend and said, in an almost pleading tone. "Look, Mike, do you really want throw all of our crap into this mess and exacerbate the situation. I mean, wouldn't Tim and Ziva or Kate be a better choice. Ya know, one of _his own_ team."

Mike sighed. _Man, you are one hard headed SOB, Jake. _"Son, whether you know it or not, _you_ _are _part of his team."

000

A/N: Sorry this chapter's so short. Just thought this was a good place to end.


	10. Troubles, Part 2

Terms:

Surveillance Detection Route (SDR) – exercise used by special operations and intelligence personnel to evade enemy forces who may be following them and/or tracking their activities.

Chp. 10

NCIS Safehouse

September 15, 2010

1820 hours

"_Ok, Mike, well if you have to, send my team and leave the goon squad as rear guard."_

On the other end, Mike winced at his probie's choice of words to describe the members of Section Eight. He was getting sick and tired of playing referee to Mr. Hatfield and Mr. McCoy. _I'm too old for this crap. I shoulda stayed on the beach. _

"Whatever you say, Gibbs." Mike answered, in a tired, annoyed voice and ended the call. He heard footsteps and turned to see the members of Section Eight all dressed in jeans and dark blue windbreakers with FBI on the back in big yellow block letters.

"Why not NCIS?" Mike asked, directing the question at Jake.

"Because no one knows what NCIS is and therefore, we'll stand out like sore thumbs. Everyone knows the FBI." Jake said, giving his old friend a wry smile when Mike scowled.

The former Agent turned and went to the living room where Ziva and McGee were on duty. "Ziva, can I see you for a minute?"

Wordlessly, she followed Franks' to the kitchen. Before he could speak, she said, "You would like me to go with Jake and his team to pick up Gibbs, Shannon, and the boy, Tony."

Franks' gave the former Mossad officer a look. "And why would I do that?"

"Because you think there will be bad blood between Gibbs and Jake."

"Correction, I _know _there's bad blood between those two."

Ziva's brow furrowed at the certainty in Mike's voice. "How can you be certain? I know they were estranged, but that could have been caused by many things." She said, looking Franks' in the eye. Then she remembered when she'd first had contact with NCIS, and read each of the team member's files. She remembered that Mike had investigated Kelly Gibbs murder. "What do you know?"

Mike turned away and looked out the window, onto the front lawn. "I assume given your former position with Mossad, you've read all of your teams files, in depth." Mike said, and Ziva nodded.

"Ok, then you know that Gibbs and Shannon's daughter was murdered when she was eight years old." Mike said and, again, Ziva nodded, her eyes filling with the pain and sorrow of someone who knows what it's like to lose a loved one.

When she didn't say anything, he continued. "I investigated her murder. She was at a park with Jake, near Pendleton. He got into a pickup basketball game with some other kids there, lost track of Kelly. When the game was over…" Mike stopped and looked away. Before, he'd cared; how could he not. Kelly had been a marine dependent and he was a former Marine and NIS agent. But since Amira had come into his life, it was deeper than that. He understood the pain that Jethro, Shannon and Jake had endured.

"When it was over, Jake couldn't find her. He told her to stay on the swings until he came for her, but when we searched, M.P.'s found evidence that she'd gone to restroom. Perp must have grabbed her on her way back to the swings. Her body was discovered a short time later." Mike finished.

They were silent for a minute, then Ziva said, "And they blame Jake. They made him what he is."

Mike nodded sadly, "Yes, they do, and they did."

00

Jake drove the eight passenger black ford Excursion to the hospital with his team, and the unwelcome addition otherwise known as Ziva David. He concentrated on his SDR with the ease and precision expected of an operative of his caliber. Ziva was in the front passenger seat, Dave seated behind her and Travis was behind Jake.

Jake parked the truck on the first level of the hospital's parking structure, killed the ignition and was reaching for the door handle, when he heard the electronic locks click into place. Having never buckled his seatbelt so as not to hinder him drawing his weapon, Jake's right hand wrapped around the butt of his 1911 and drew the weapon in a practiced, fluid motion. He pointed the .45 at Ziva, being careful to keep the weapon below the window line. He heard the whisper of metal against leather, as his comrades followed his lead and drew their weapons. "Alright," he said in a tight voice.

"This can go one of two ways. Either you answer my questions and unlock the door, or you don't and I shoot you." Jake said, in a surprisingly even tone.

Ziva stayed still, placed both of her hands on the center console and looked into Jake's serious, penetrating green eyes. She caught herself again thinking that the man in front of her was handsome. _Get ahold of yourself!_ A voice in her head barked, and she listened to it. There would be plenty of time for scrutinizing the former Special Forces soldier at a later date. That is, if he lived through the confrontation with Gibbs, or Shannon, for that matter. The thought made her smile; Shannon Gibbs had been more of a mother to her than her biological mother had ever thought about being. The same could be said for Gibbs as a father figure, perhaps more so. The hell if she was going to let them be hurt again on her watch. "All I ask is that you think about what they are going through; what they have gone through. Ripping open old wounds will do no one any good."

The inside of the vehicle was so quiet for several minutes that you could've heard a pin drop. Finally, Jake's face softened and he reholstered his 1911, Dave and Travis doing likewise. "Ok, Ziva, you win. But I'm not gonna sit there and take a bunch of undeserved crap. We clear?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ziva nodded, and unlocked the doors. "We are clear."

000

Shannon sat on the bed, watching Tony sleep. She'd been there for hours, but it didn't bother her. If she was being honest with herself, the situation in which she found herself broke her heart. She couldn't believe that she hadn't seen what was being done to Tony before now. No…that wasn't right. She'd seen it alright; they all had. But, she'd turned away. Just like everyone else. Shannon Gibbs had betrayed her own code, and it made sick.

Once she'd berated herself about Tony, her mind turned to Jake. Oh, how she wished she could turn back the clock and beat the crap out of that stupid, emotional bitch that she had been. Sure, her baby girl had been murdered, but that wasn't Jake's fault. It had happened on his watch, yes, that much was true. But she had no right to blame him, because she and Jethro were just as much to blame for Kelly's death. She knew that now. She hadn't then, but she'd had almost twenty years to reflect.

She remembered that after it happened Jake got his GED, rather than a high school diploma. Then he got a job, and began training in earnest for his chosen to career. It didn't surprise her that her son had known neither of them would sign the paperwork allowing him to enlist at seventeen, even though she couldn't stand the sight of him.

So, he trained. Jake had always been in good shape, but between the time Kelly died and his leaving for Special Forces training, he turned into a machine. In addition to getting in shape physically, he spent some time in Stillwater, Pennsylvania, Jethro's hometown. There he honed other skills like shooting, hand to hand combat and he even learned Arabic.

Shannon suspected that Jake's time in Stillwater had as much to do with training as trying to regain familial acceptance. Jackson Gibbs was the only one who'd never blamed him for what happened. What broke her, in the end, was that Jake had never even called to say goodbye. He left Stillwater and reported for training the week before his eighteenth birthday.

"What are you thinking?" a voice whispered, bringing Shannon back to the present.

Without turning, she smiled, knowing who it was. "How did you know I was thinking, Jethro?"

"You've got that look." Gibbs said, giving his wife a knowing look.

"I was thinking about when I came up with rule fifty-one."

Gibbs thought about that particular rule for a long time. _Sometimes, you're wrong. _He remembered coming home from the Navy Yard to see his wife sitting in the couch, crying her eyes out and clutching the last picture that had been taken of the four of them together before Kelly's death. He remembered Shannon telling him about Jake leaving Stillwater for Special Forces training without even telling them.

Gibbs had tried to console her; tried to tell her that they could find Jake, if she wanted to. That was how he'd put it, _'We'll find him, if you want to.'_

That had led to the worst fight they'd ever had. She accused him of not caring about the fact that their son could die and they'd never know about it. He shot back that she hadn't cared about Jake anymore than he did up until that afternoon. Jethro could still feel the sting on his cheek from the slap he'd received for that one. Then she'd yelled at him to get out, and he'd spent the next week sleeping on Mike Franks' pull out couch.

Before either of them could say more, there was a knock at the door.

000

A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger!


	11. Surprise

A/N: This is my favorite chapter. I had trouble with it initially, and I have to give props to Lt., for his support. But I attacked it from a different direction and like what I came up with. Hope y'all do as well. Enjoy!

Chp. 11

Georgetown University Hospital

September 15, 2010

Washington, D.C.

1905 hours

Dave and Travis looked at the driver's seat when Jake didn't move. They understood why he'd decided to stay with the car. This op was hard enough knowing that Gibbs was involved. "You are not coming?" Ziva asked, acting suprised. But in truth, she wasn't. Jake had blinked, as Americans were fond of saying. Gibbs had that effect on people.

"Someone has to stay with the vehicle, Ziva."

With that settled, the other three left. Alone with his thoughts, Jake considered his options. He could walk away, but the mere thought of that left a bad taste in his mouth, as he'd never walked away from anything in his life. But these thoughts were pushed to the back of his mind when he checked the review mirror, and noticed someone sitting in a car, a row or two behind the SUV he was sitting in. He almost didn't see it, as the person had ducked down and only popped back up for a second. That had done it.

Jake smiled, feeling the tingle of adrenaline that he always got before action. He flexed his hands and pulled his weapon from its holster. His personal Rule Number 1, Never Assume, played in his head. So, even though he always carried his 1911 at Condition 1, with the hammer cocked, slide lock safety engaged, with a round in the chamber, he checked the weapon just the same. And just like he thought, a round was in the chamber. _What's the point of a $2000+ paperweight? _

That done, he opened the door, climbed out and stretched, using the time to look right and left without being obvious about it. The figure he'd seen a moment ago didn't materialize and Jake suddenly doubted himself. But then that old voice in his head said what it always said when he let his doubts creep into his mind. _Jake, stop bitchin' and kill this mother already. _

He grinned and moved toward the hospital's entrance, but turned right when he reached the sidewalk, moving at a leisurely pace, as if he was just stretching his legs. The FBI windbreaker he wore supported the cover beautifully. He was the rookie or the inept buffoon who got left to 'guard' the vehicle. But nothing could be further from the truth. In addition to his 1911, Jake carried an Emerson CQC 7 folding knife and an ASP expandable baton.

Sure enough, a few minutes passed before he heard footsteps behind him. He smiled and turned in a direction that would take him back to the SUV. He didn't want to carry this SOB. When he was almost to the truck, he heard his pursuer's footsteps slapping the pavement as he or she ran toward him, abandoning noise discipline. Without stopping, Jake pulled the baton from its scabbard on his belt and flicked his wrist, expanding the device to its full length of 16". Just as Jake felt a hand reach up to grab him, he sidestepped to his left and spun around bringing the baton up in his right hand, then sending it crashing down onto his opponent's right arm with enough force that Jake actually heard bones break.

The man gasped in shock, the pain not even registering, and his weapon clattered to the ground. The man was a professional, because he was ignoring his shattered arm, as much as one could ignore such an injury, and holding a folding knife not unlike Jake's own in his uninjured hand. "You don't have to die." Jake said, in an effort to avoid further conflict. It wasn't that he cared whether or not he killed this man, it was just that killing him would make an already difficult situation worse. The man shook his head. "You don….don't know Dinozzo…like I do." He said, breathing heavily from the pain, and lunged forward, which was exactly what Jake was waiting for. Grabbing his opponent's arm, Jake turned it down and used all his strength to force the knife into the man's own thigh, careful to avoid the femoral artery, as he didn't want his only lead bleeding to death before he could be interrogated. With both arms and one leg out of commission, Jake whipped the other man around before he could react and put his neck in a vise grip, cutting off his carotid artery until Jake felt him go limp, which wasn't long, considering what the man had just gone through.

After checking to make sure his prisoner was still alive, Jake set about getting the man, whose name was Mark Deemings, loaded into the SUV and bandaging his wounds so that he would in fact live to be questioned, with a big shot of morphine to ensure that Deemings didn't wake and force Jake explain things he didn't _want_ to explain. Lastly, he covered Deemings with a tarp he found in the rear cargo area. Then, after retrieving Deemings weapon, Jake went back to his post. As if nothing had happened.

000


	12. Home

Chp. 12

As they rode the elevator up to Tony's room, Dave turned to Ziva. "I think you should take the lead."

Ziva understood what the former SAS man was getting at. "I believe that would be advisable, given Gibbs probable mood."

"So, I guess he's pretty pissed about this whole thing." Travis surmised.

Ziva shrugged. "I truly do not know what he feels. I would imagine that seeing one's child after a twenty year estrangement would be hard for anyone. Did Jake ever mention him?"

Both men shook their heads. "We got the feeling that as far as Jake was concerned, his family was dead to him, all except his grandfather Jackson." Dave said as the elevator came to a stop and the door's opened.

With that pronouncement, Ziva knew this wasn't going to end well.

000

While Travis and Dave took up station in the hallway, Ziva knocked on the door to Tony's room and waited. Seconds later, the door opened a crack and Gibb's face appeared. He looked past Ziva and saw, not Kate and Tim, but Travis and Dave. He scowled, but stepped back and pulled the door open, allowing Ziva to enter.

"Sitrep?" Gibbs asked.

"Jake stayed with the vehicle. Is Tony ready to leave?"

"I'll find the doc." Gibbs said and left quickly.

"He didn't want to leave us." Shannon said, smiling.

"Jethro's a good man." Ziva agreed. But before the conversation could continue, Tony stirred.

"Mommy?" he asked sleepily as his eyes fluttered open.

Shannon and Ziva both smiled. They couldn't help it; the kid was cute.

"No, honey." Shannon said, gently running a hand through his hair as his eyes opened. "It's Mrs. Gibbs." She said, her tone gentle and soothing. Tony loved Mrs. Gibbs, largely because she reminded him about his mother. What little he could remember.

Tony sat up in bed and looked around the room, his eyes settling on Ziva. She smiled, in an effort to appear less threatening. "Who are you?"

"Tony, this is Ziva. She works with my husband. He was here earlier, when you were asleep."

Ziva noted the way that Tony seemed to drink in all the attention that Shannon was giving him, even if it was something as simple as explaining what was going on around him.

Ziva moved to stand beside the bed and waited patiently. Tony looked up at her and grinned, sticking out his hand. "Hi, please to meet you, Ziva."

Ziva smiled, "I am pleased to meet you as well, Tony."

Just then, the door started to open and Ziva turned, shielding Tony and Shannon while reaching for her Sig. But she relaxed when she saw that it was Gibbs. He smirked when he saw her in what he liked to call, 'attack mode.'

"You ok?" He asked, looking at all three but directing the question at Ziva. All three nodded, but Jethro could feel Tony's eyes on him. When he looked directly at Tony, the boy looked away. Shannon caught it and was quick to reassure her young charge. "It's alright, Tony. This is my husband, Jethro."

Tony looked at him warily for a moment before responding. "Hi, Mr. Gibbs."

"Hi, Tony. You can call me Gibbs." He said, keeping his tone even and gentle. It was clear that Tony was uncomfortable with men.

"Hey, Tony, I think the doctor's going to let you go home; would you like that?" Shannon asked, looking at Tony.

At the mention of home, Tony shuddered so violently that the other three couldn't help but notice. "What I meant was, we're going to my house." Shannon added quickly. "Would you like that?"

At the mention of leaving the hospital and going somewhere other than home, Tony immediately relaxed. "I don't wanna go to my house."

Rather than engage in a discussion as to why Tony didn't want to go home, Shannon smiled and stood, pulling the covers back. "Ok, why don't we get you dressed, then we can get out of here."

Gibbs and Ziva left to give Tony some privacy. "So, how do you wanna play this?" Gibbs asked, looking at Dave and Travis.

The two men had already worked out a strategy that would work. "I go first. Ziva, Gibbs, you sandwich Shannon and the boy, and Travis covers our rear flank." Dave said.

Gibbs nodded. It was a good plan and what he would've done. He turned and went back to collect his wife and Tony. When they returned a minute later, Dave lead the group to the stairwell and, after checking that it was clear, proceeded downstairs, the others close behind. Upon reaching the ground floor, Dave took up station outside the door, just as the group's SUV, with Jake behind the wheel came to a stop at the curb. Moving quickly, Gibbs opened the rear passenger door and slid across the seat, Tony coming next, then Shannon and finally Ziva. Travis, who'd been covering them by the open door, slammed it shut as soon as Ziva was inside, turned and opened the front passenger door, and threw himself in. Jake didn't have to be told and slammed the accelerator to floor, sending the truck off like a shot.

000


	13. Wedge

Chp. 13

Jake was glad he was driving, as it gave him something to concentrate on other than the fact that he was mere inches away from two people he thought he'd never see again. And, as of a week ago, he'd been fine with that. In truth, it had been so long since Kelly's death that he no longer had anything to do with his family, save his grandfather, Jackson. Like his mother, his grandmother, Joann Fielding, hated him for 'killing her baby girl'. Sanctimonious bitch could take a long walk off a short pier, as far as Jake was concerned.

As long buried painful memories forced their way to the surface of his consciousness, Jake's grip on the steering wheel tightened, until all of his knuckles had turned while. At the same time, his foot increased pressure on the accelerator and he watched as the speedometer inched upward.

80….90…100 miles per hour.

"Does he have to drive so fast?" A small voice asked from the back seat. Shannon glanced up down at Tony. He looked like he was going to be sick. She shot Jethro a look and he leaned forward, touching Jake's shoulder.

"What?" Jake growled, knowing exactly what the man wanted, but he wanted to make him say it.

"Think you might could slow down, Jake?" Gibbs asked in a surprisingly reasonable tone.

Wordlessly, Jake eased off the speedometer, and flipped his turn signal down, changing lanes and exiting the freeway doing 70mph. Luckily, the light was green and he speed through it, keeping the truck to a steady 70mph. "Slow enough for you?" he asked without turning around. Five minutes later, they reached the safehouse, and Jake pulled to a stop in front of it.

He stayed where he was as Ziva, Gibbs and the others exited. He saw Kate, Max and Tim standing on the porch. "Dave!" he called, and when the man turned, Jake jerked his head for him to get in the passenger's seat.

When Dave had complied, Jake took his foot off the break and turned around the circle. But instead of heading for the road, he drove to the back of the property, where a barn was standing. Surprised, Dave asked. "What's up?"

Jake jerked his thumb toward the cargo area and said, "Took a prisoner."

The Brit's brow furrowed. "Dinozzo sent someone? How'd he know about us already?"

Jake yawned and rubbed his face. "He didn't. Guy said Dinozzo sent him to get the kid back."

As they reached the barn, Dave asked. "What was that crap you pulled earlier?"

"To what crap are you referring?" Jake asked, playing dumb.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" Dave snapped, but his words and tone were controlled.

"Oh, I get it. You think I should confront Gibbs and Shannon, is that it?"

"They're your parents, ya fookin' bastard!" Mallard hissed. He respected Gibbs and knew that his uncle loved Shannon like a daughter. And all that aside, the Gibbs' family's issues weren't good for the operation.

Ignoring his comrade's attempt to get him explain himself, Jake only growled. "Help me unload him."

000

While Tim and Mike brought Jethro up to speed on what they'd discovered on Dinozzo Sr., Travis and Max escorted Shannon and Tony to an upstairs bedroom. Shannon could help smiling when she entered the room and saw a king size bed with a stack of children's books on the night stand next to it. _Abby strikes again. _

Shannon suspected that Max told his sister to give Tony time to settle in before meeting everyone. Whatever the case, she was grateful that Tony hadn't been accosted by the tenderhearted and well meaning gothic forensic scientist. Pushing her hurt caused by Jake's cruelty aside, she sat down on the bed, Tony nestled securely and comfortably in her arms. "Thanks, guys."

"I'll be right outside." Max said, and at the look of surprise, he clarified. "Sorry, Boss' orders."

Shannon smiled, touched by the gesture, regardless of who ordered it. Be that Jethro, Mike…or Jake. "Thanks, Max."

He nodded and shut the door. "Who were those guys, Mrs. Gibbs?"

Shannon frowned. She didn't want Tony to keep calling her Mrs. Gibbs. It sounded too formal for the circumstances. "Hey, Tony, look at me, sweetheart." When he did, she continued.

"You know, we're gonna have to stay here for a while, right?" she asked, and Tony nodded.

"Well," she said, moving the small boy off her lap and sitting him down on the bed next to her. "How about, while we're here, you call me Shannon; if you want to, sweetie."

Tony considered this for a moment, then nodded. "Ok, Shannon."

She smiled, and pulled him into a hug, placing a gentle kiss on top of his head. "Now, what do you say I read you a book or six?" Shannon asked, pulling back and look at the stack of books.

Tony nodded, a puzzled look on his face. Shannon let it go, but she was determined to get to the bottom of Tony's past.

000

While his mother and Tony were bonding, Jake was busy preparing to interrogate his prisoner. Outside, the barn looked like…well…a barn. But inside, it was a soundproofed interrogation facility, complete with video and audio capabilities. But neither of those would be used. Jake would squeeze every last drop of information out of this prick that he could. Then he'd take great pleasure in pulling out his .45 and shooting him in the head.


	14. Gibbs Family Reunion, Part 1

Chp. 14

"So, how long you think before Gibbs discovers this place?" Dave asked, as the two men waited for their prisoner to come around.

Jake shrugged. "Depend's if his team knows about it. They'd tell him in a heartbeat."

Dave nodded the disgust in his friend's voice and decided to say something he'd been putting off for a longtime. "Why didn't you ever try to reconnect?"

Jake shrugged. "Didn't see the point. They all made it clear they didn't want me around because they either blamed me and/or I reminded them of what it was like when Kelly was still alive. Then when I joined Special Forces and then Delta, I was so busy that I just never really had time to think about it."

"Look, I know that it's none of my business, but wouldn't you think people's opinions and attitudes would change over a period of almost twenty years?"

To Dave's surprise, Jake actually seemed to consider what he was saying. After a long minute, he looked at his friend and nodded thoughtfully. "Maybe you're right."

But before they could continue, their prisoner woke up.

000

After being updated by Mcgee and Mike, Gibbs went upstairs to see if he could find Jake. He wasn't going to dance around the issues that he brought them to where they were. In truth, he felt the same as Shannon. He wanted to make amends with his son and be a part of his life once again. Reaching the top of the stairs, Gibbs wasn't surprised to find himself staring down the business ends of two M4 rifles.

When they realized who it was, Max and Travis both lowered their weapons. "We put Shannon and the kid in this room." Max said, jerking his head toward the room he'd been standing in front of.

The NCIS agent nodded, but it was clear by the expression on his face they'd done something to offend him. _Probably by not referring to our charge by name, _Max thought, angrily. Didn't this moron get it? On protection detail, you always keep the protectee at arm's length so that you don't compromise their safety because you want to keep them happy.

"Either of you know where Jake is?" Gibbs asked, after a tense moment of silence.

Both men shrugged. "I think he went to check the perimeter; Dave's with him." Travis answered.

Gibbs nodded and went back the way he'd come. Before either man could comment on the exchange, a door opened and they instinctively trained their weapons on it, in case of a threat. But upon seeing it was Layla and Amira, both men quickly lowered their weapons. Layla carried her daughter to the bathroom without a word to either man and shut the door. Five minutes later, the process was repeated in reverse. When mother and daughter were back in their room, Max whispered. "What's her story?"

"Who Layla?" Travis asked.

"No, the tooth fairy, you moron. Yes, Layla."

Travis gave his friend the finger, then answered. "Mike's son was a Marine. He served in Iraq at some point and met Layla there. Amira was a result of that relationship. Layla's mother didn't take kindly to her daughter being defied by an infidel and they were smuggled out of Iraq and found Mike."

Max nodded in appreciation. "Brave woman."

"You got that right."

000

Gibbs went to the kitchen where Ziva and Kate were standing watch. He figured if Dave was with Jake, Kate would know where they were. Thinking about Kate and Dave's relationship brought a smile to his face. Dave had actually come to ask Gibbs blessing before dating Kate. When the former Marine had asked him why, he'd expected Dave to say because of rule twelve. But Dave said it was due to mutual respect, because of Gibbs' service in the Marine Corp and that Kate looked at the elder agent like a father. That alone had won the former SAS man Gibbs' undying respect, no small thing. And Gibbs' understood now why his son would want to work with such a man.

Both women were watching the rear of the house intently, and didn't notice him enter, so he cleared his throat. Kate turned. "You seen Dave?" Gibbs asked.

"The truck we were in is parked by that barn." Ziva said, answering for her friend. "I saw Jake and Dave go in…"The former Mossad officer glanced at her watch. "Twenty minutes ago."

"Thanks, Ziva." Gibbs said, moving through the room and going out the back door.

Kate felt a shiver run down her spine. "What do you think he's going to do?"

As they watched their mentor walk to the barn, Ziva sighed, "In truth, Kate, I do not know. And do not want to."

000

Twenty minutes earlier.

"Hey, Dickhead!" Jake yelled, snapping his prisoner from half awake to fully awake in less than a second. "Wake up!"

"I ne…need a doctor." Martin Deemings said, in a pain fill voice.

"Need?" Jake asked in a condescending voice. "You don't need spit, Marty. You _want_ a doctor." Jack clarified.

"Want…Need…You stabbed me in the leg, you prick!" Deemings yelled, spitting on his captor.

Jake ignored this and instead asked his first question. "What were you, Marty? Back in the day."

"U.S., Army, 96B."

Jake raised his eyebrows and nodded, like he was impressed. 96B was an MOS designation for intelligence analyst. Any chance Martin Deemings had had of walking out of the interrogation room alive had just been sunk. Every soldier within the Special Operations community, if he serves there long enough, knows he will receive bad intel and it will cost him and his men dearly. Jake and Dave had been such soldier, more than once. In fact, it was an intel screw up that led Jake to leave the army and take his skills elsewhere.

"So you're telling me that Dinozzo, a man with all manner of skill sets at his disposal, sends an intel weenie to retrieve his kid."

At this, Deemings face flushed with anger. "I served my country, the same as you!"

Jake was standing over him before the words even left his mouth, the former Special Forces soldier's .45 automatic pressed painfully against Deeming's head. "Do me a favor and don't compare what I did in the field to what you did back at the base, safe behind the wall with a friggin' hot cup of coffee in hand, you prick!" Jake shouted.

"Please…" Deemings sobbed, pleading the crazed maniac not to kill him. "It was…it was just like before."

Jake took a step back. "What'd you mean, 'like before'? You mean to tell me this has happened _more than once_?" Jake yelled, incredulous.

Deemings nodded quickly. "Yes! Mr. Dinozzo has, or I should say had, a mistress. She had a daughter." Deemings said the last part with a hint of disgust in his voice. Jake fought the urged to charge the man again with his .45, and waited for his prisoner to continue.

"Dinozzo wanted the girl and her stupid bitch of a mother wouldn't give her up." Deemings said, his voice taking on the somber tone, as if the man regretted having done something.

"So, Marty, you made your bones by killing a woman and kidnapping her child?" Jake asked a surprisingly calm and clinical tone.

By this point, tears were ruling down Deemings face. "Please! You have to understand, with a dishonorable discharge and prison time on my record people weren't exactly lining up to give me a job!" Deemings wailed in a pleading tone. "I've got three kids of my own! You think I enjoy doing this?"

Instead of responding, Jake stepped back and extended his .45 caliber pistol. "Any last words, before I blow your head off?" Jake asked, in conversational tone.

"Please! I can tell you where she is; you can save her and Tony!" Deemings yelled hysterically.

"Tell us where who is?" Dave asked, stepping away from the wall and uncrossing his arms.

Jake took a step back, flipped up the slide stop and reholstered his weapon. Decided to give Dave time to play good cop, he left the room. Once outside, he reached into his jacket and pulled a cigar from the inside pocket, put it in his mouth, then pulled his lighter from his jeans pocket and lit up. After taking a couple of good puffs, he started walking back to the house, but froze when he heard a voice behind him. "Don't you know those things will kill you?"

000

Jake fought the urge to draw his weapon, turn and fire. It wouldn't do him any good. It wouldn't do any of them any good. His father was the glue that held MCRT together and besides, whatever his feelings, he couldn't do that to his mother, wouldn't do it. Instead, he shoved both hands in his jacket pockets and turned to face his father. To his surprise, Gibbs said, "Look, I need to get something off my chest, and I need you to listen. Then, after this thing with Dinozzo is over, if you decide you never want to see your mother and I ever again, I'll understand. But I need to say this."

When Jake remained silent, puffing on his cigar, Gibbs continued.

"When you went to Stillwater, to be honest, we were relieved. Because the truth was, we blamed ourselves for what happened to Kelly. You were just a convenient target. What you probably don't know is that your grandfather called every week with an update." Gibbs said, smiling when his son's brows furrowed.

"Why did he think you care?"

Gibbs looked away. "We didn't at first. Then Jack asked us what we would do if you died thinking we hated you. We woke up, and started listening. I knew what you were doing, when he told us you were exercising and shooting regularly. What really surprised me was the Arabic. Where'd that come from?"

In spite of himself, Jake grinned. "I figured knowing a foreign language would give me a leg up in Special Forces. I knew enough Spanish to communicate and I figured with Arabic, I'd be set to work pretty much anywhere in the world. With time, my fluency in Spanish got better, as well as the Arabic."

Gibbs smiled. "I'm proud of you son."

"Thanks, dad." Jake said, in a husky voice, tears rolling down his face. Gibbs closed the distance between them and hugged his son.

After twenty years of estrangement, he hadn't expected his father to welcome him back so readily. But maybe Dave was right; maybe people did change.

000

A/N: Ok, I've spent the past week working on this chapter. I like it, and as my good friend, Lt. told me, "Don't put it out there til YOU like how it reads." I'm going to post the Gibbs family reunion in two parts, as I'm sure you've guessed. I tried to think about what it would be like not see my family for twenty years after a tragedy, then reunite. This is what I came up with. If Gibbs seems out of character, I apologize. Look for Jake and Shannon reunion sometime next week. And the issue discussed in the chapter will come up later, trust me. Semper Fi!

A/N2: Thanks for the Alerts, favorites, reviews or even just reading. We do this for ourselves, but it's great that some of y'all like it too.


	15. FUBAR, Part 1

Chp. 15

"So, what'd you find out?" Gibbs asked.

"Martin Deemings, that's our prisoner's name, was ordered to retrieve Tony. Said it was supposed to be like before."

Gibbs eyes narrowed. "This has happened before?"

"If you mean has Dinozzo had his kid taken from him, then yes."

"Let me guess, CPS removed Tony at some point."

"You'd think that, wouldn't you?"

"Get to the point, Jacob." Gibbs said in an exasperated tone.

"Relax, jarhead, I'm getting there."

"Dinozzo has a mistress and she had a kid. Dinozzo turned out to be the daddy, which proved unfortunate, because when he wanted said kid, the mistress wouldn't give her up."

"And Dinozzo sent Deemings' to retrieve the kid?"

"Yeah, him and two others. A former recon marine name Perez and an SAS operator named Wallace."

"And where are they?"

"Dead."

Gibbs brow furrowed. "Dead?"

"Yeah, dead. But here's the thing. Both died under mysterious circumstances. Wallace was killed in a hit and run; and Perez died as a result of a hunting accident. Wanna guess who he was hunting with?"

Gibbs scowled. "Deemings."

Jake nodded. "Yeah, Deemings. Apparently, our intel weenie moonlights as a hitman."

Gibbs nodded, and squeezed his son's shoulder in a gesture of support. "Get back in there and see what else he knows." Gibbs said as he turned and walked back to the house.

"Roger that." Jake said, turning to go back the interrogation room.

000

Dave turned as the door opened and Jake stepped into the cell. Jake noticed Deemings had developed a nosebleed since he'd been out of the room. "Looks like Marty's been less than cooperative."

Dave nodded. "No, that's not true at all. Marty thought It'd been a good idea to play the tough guy and tell me to go F myself. I merely explained that it wouldn't be a good idea to screw with us and he should tell us where the mistress' kid and his boss are."

Before Jake could comment, Deemings spoke. "He said you'd fall for it."

Both operators felt the hair rise on the back of their necks. Jake replayed everything he'd done from the time that he'd arrived at the hospital up to this point. Come to think of it, taking down Deemings had been way too easy. Even for him.

"Outside, now." Jake said, leaving the room. Dave turned as if he was going to leave as well. In a flash, he moved behind Deemings and put the man a sleeper hold. A minute passed before Dave let go and joined his boss outside.

"Lemme guess, you think our friend in there was lowjacked." Dave said, as the two hurried back to the main house.

"Yeah, I do."

"How long you think we've got?"

"Not long enough. Get everybody except Ziva to the saferoom in basement. Quick as you can."

"What are you gonna do?"

Jake grinned. "I'm gonna leave our friends few party favors."

000

A/N: Another cliff hanger. Hehe. Next chapter- Jake and Co. terminate their enemy's with extreme prejudice. Stay tuned.


	16. Gunfight at the OK CorralFUBAR PRT 2

Chp. 16

"You tell me what's going on right now, Gibbs!" Abby whispered, harshly.

"Jake wants everyone in the safe room in the basement. If I were you, I'd listen." Gibbs said as he led the group to the aforementioned safe room. He was surprised to find Max there, as he figured the members of Section Eight would be strategically placed throughout the house.

"Jake send you?"

The former Seal nodded. "Something like that. Wanted make sure this place was truly safe and that the agency didn't screw us."

Gibbs smirked. "CIA or FBI?"

"Both."

Abby got right in her brother's face. "You're staying, right?"

Knowing what she meant, he said. "No. You'll be perfectly safe with Gibbs and the others."

"But you…" She started.

"Relax, Abby. I've done this a thousand times."

"You need another gun?" Mike asked, not bothering to disguise the eagerness in his voice. Franks had always been an action junky.

But before Max could respond, Layla stepped forward and asserted herself. "Mike, would you like for your only grandchild to have to bury the one constant positive male influence in her life?"

Franks' seemed to consider this for a moment, but then he glared defiantly at his daughter-in-law. "You know I don't. But fights like this, it's every gun that counts." Mike said, holding up his 1911 for emphasis.

Max decided to put an end to this once and for all. He stepped between the two and pushed Mike into a chair. Then before the former NCIS agent could object, Max said, "Sit, stay, good Franks." And patted the older man on the head. Before the others could react, Max left and shut the door behind him. "That goes for you, too, Gibbs!" Max yelled through the door.

000

The rest of Section Eight, plus Ziva, were in the kitchen when Max returned. "So, I take it they didn't go quietly?"

"Franks asked me if we need another gun."

Jake shook his head. The man didn't give up. "So, what's the plan?" Dave asked.

"Max, I want you and 'Betsy' upstairs, in the front bedroom. Dave, Travis, and I'll take the right side of the front approach road, from the house. I figure they'll infiltrate in at least one vehicle, so Ziva, I want you upstairs with Max, with an RPG to disable their vehicle if they have one."

"What makes you think they would use a vehicle so close and expose themselves?" Travis asked.

Jake sighed. "My guess is they're orders are to get Tony back, at all costs."

"Hasn't Dinozzo every heard of a blow up doll?" Dave asked, in a poor attempt at humor.

His teammates snickered, but Ziva glared at him. "How can you say such things? He is a child!"

Jake rolled his eyes. "They don't have sarcasm in Israel, Agent David?"

Ziva rolled her eyes and turned to Max. "I am with you, yes?"

He nodded and started toward the stairs. When Ziva was out of earshot, Dave said, "Could you try and not piss off our allies?"

"_Neke hallak." _Jake said in Arabic, encouraging his friend to perform an anatomically impossible function. "You're the one who opened your mouth, Dave."

"_Oi!_ You're blaming your issues with women on _me." _

"You, the universe, Gibbs. Take your pick. Grab your gear; out front in five."

As Dave left, Jake groaned inwardly. This op definitely wasn't paying enough.

000

The rifle Jake had referred to as 'Betsy' was a Remington 700PSS chambered in .300 Winchester Magnum, mounted on a black Stage 2 Accuracy International Chassis System. Max fitted the weapon with a Knight's suppressor and a 10X fixed power Leupold M3 Ultra sniper scope.

"So, you served with him?" Ziva asked, as she got in position behind the RPG and waited.

"Something like that." Max kept his answer purposefully vague. Like Jake, he'd read Ziva's file and knew about her past.

"What's he like?"

"You mean in combat?"

"Yes."

"You know the Devil, Lucifer?" Max asked, and Ziva nodded.

"On a good day, Jake makes Satan look like a kitten."

"And on a day like today?"

"God help the opposition 'cause Jake Gibbs don't know the meanin' of words like 'restraint' and 'mercy'." Max said, and settled himself behind his rifle.

000

"They're gonna keep the bad people from getting in here, right?" Tony asked Gibbs as the agent sat down next him.

Gibbs smiled in an effort to reassure the boy. "They will. It's their job."

"What if they get through the door?"

"They won't." Shannon said, from her seat on Tony's other side. She put her arm around Tony and hugged him. "Jake won't let them."

Abby, Kate and Tim, watched the scene from across the room and neither women could keep the 'aww' from escaping their lips.

"They do look like a family, when you think about it." Abby whispered.

Before the others could respond, they all heard the sound of gunfire coming from upstairs.

000

"Vehicle incoming." Jake radioed to Max and Ziva as an SUV, with its headlights extinguished, came toward them.

"Roger."

The two teams watched six men dressed in black tactical gear and carrying MP-5 submachine guns exited the truck and silently made their way through the woods to the left of the driveway. Jake had convinced his father to get rid of the two NCIS agent's stationed by the road.

"I count six. Confirm?" Jake whispered.

"Roger; I have the pointman. " Max said, placing his crosshairs on the first man in the column.

"Take him." Jake whispered. Seconds later, he heard the muted sound of Max doing what he did best. Then a body fell. He, Dave and Travis watched as the group scattered, but they formed a perimeter, with three facing the house and two facing the road. The three facing the house opened fire. The two facing the road waited. Jake raised his HK and noted where the fire was coming from, then fired his under barrel M203 grenade launcher which he'd loaded with a High Explosive road. Five seconds passed when he heard the explosion, followed by screams. "SITREP?"

Max looked at the large section of burning woods and did a quick head count. "All dead, Boss. Good work."

"Thank you. Cover us."

"Will do."

Jake, Dave and Travis moved to where the snatch team was dead and dying and checked to make sure none of them were alive. Jake moved past two men who were severely burned as Dave unholstered his HK USP compact .40 caliber and put two rounds in their heads, just to make sure. Dave stopped when he saw a third man was still alive, but mortally wounded due to shrapnel.

"You should….should've…just given him…back." The man said, forcing the words out, as it was an effort just to breath. Jake pulled his 1911 from the holster on his thigh and knelt down next to the dying man.

"Did you know what Dinozzo did to Tony?" He asked, and the man nodded.

"Then I hope you enjoy hell." Jake said, as he deftly put two rounds through the man's forehead.

000

AN: Sorry it's taken so long to update. Hope y'all liked it. Thanks for reading.


	17. Exfil

Chp. 17

Jake reholstered his 1911 and stood next to the man he'd just shot. Then he started toward the barn where Martin Deemings was being held. "Get the civilians. We're out of here in fifteen." Dave and Travis barely nodded before starting for the house.

Upstairs, Max was packing up his rifle. "Go help them collect the civilians."

"Where are we going?"

Max smiled. "Only Jake knows."

000

Jake didn't go in the barn right aware. He walked around outside and worked to calm himself. He would kill Deemings, no question. But he needed more information from him first. In Jake's experience, men who felt they were going to die had no incentive to talk. After mentally rehearsing what he would do, Jake opened the door and stepped inside.

000

"Do you think anybody's alive up there?" Tony asked in a small, timid voice.

"'Course they are. Good guys anyway. Jake an' his boys are too mean to die." Mike said.

No one said anything. Shannon glared at Mike over Tony's head.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps outside the door. As one, Gibbs, Mike, Kate and McGee all pointed their weapons at the door. But what they heard made them lower their weapons and grin collectively.

"I ain't goin' first. Two crazy jarheads, a women with a gun who may or may not be going through that time of the month where all men are considered Satan and a geek who probably doesn't know a gun from his ipod." Travis said.

"Pussy." Dave said, opening the door, only to walk right into the muzzle of Kate's Sig.

He grinned at the pissed off look on his girlfriend's face. "Hey, I didn't say, notin'. You wanna shoot somebody, shoot him."

"What's the plan?" Gibbs asked.

"We're pulling out in fifteen. Get your kits together."

000

Deemings' head snapped up as the door to his cell opened. The figure stepped through the door, but stayed in the shadow. "Where's the girl, Marty?"

"What girl?" Deemings' asked, thoroughly confused.

The figure moved with surprising swiftness and Deemings' felt searing pain in his jaw. But before Deemings' could process the pain in his jaw, hands grabbed his lapels roughly and he found himself face to face with the man who'd threatened to kill him earlier. "Do…Not…Screw…With…Me!" Jake yelled, pressing his 1911 painfully under Deemings' chin.

"Ok! OK!" Deemings' screamed. "She's at Dinozzo's compound. He's hired a nanny to take care of her 24/7."

Jake stepped back and turned as if to leave. "What…what happens now?" Deemings' asked weakly.

Jake stopped, and wrapped his hand around his .45. "Funny you should ask." Jake said, turning back to face Demmings and drawing the weapon. "No…No…Wait!"

Jake didn't wait.

000

As Travis, Dave, Ziva and the other's moved their protectees to the waiting vehicles, they all heard the distinctive sound of gunfire coming from the interrogation cell. The agents rushed the civilians to the trucks while the members of Section Eight formed a perimeter between the SUV's and the house. Suddenly they saw someone come out of the interrogation room, but the door stayed open. They watched as the figure pulled something off his vest, tossed it back into the room and started toward them. As the man approached them, they lowered their weapons after realizing that it was Jake. Then the soldiers heard and saw the distinctive pop and flash of a WP or white phosphorous grenade.

"Mount up! We're out of here."

The men followed their leader without question, each wondering what Deemings had told Jake to warrant being shot seven times.


	18. Prodding

Terms:

SF: short hand for Special Forces

Chp. 18

Jake walked to the nearest SUV and climbed in. He glanced at the review mirror and silently thanked his good fortune. Camilla, Layla and Mike stared back at him. What amazed him was that Amira was still asleep. But then again, having Mike as a grandfather, things like this were probably the norm for her.

"So, where too, junior?"

"Stillwater, Pennsylvania." Jake said, as the front passenger side door opened and Ziva climbed in.

Jake started the engine, put the truck in drive and pulled out. As he turned onto the road, Mike asked. "Why Stillwater?"

"Aren't you going to ask what's in Stillwater?" Jake asked.

"It's where Probie's from."

The former soldier grinned in the driver's seat. "Very good, Mikey."

"Son, you call me 'Mikey' one more time and I'll shoot you."

Jake rolled his eyes. "Where's your sense of humor Jarhead."

"So, why are we going to Stillwater?" Camilla asked again.

"I need to draw Dinozzo, Sr. out, make him come to us."

"Isn't that what he did tonight?"

"Yes and no. He sent his guys for Tony, but he stayed safe behind the wire, so to speak."

"And why do you want him so badly?" This question came from Layla. It was clear she didn't like the fact that her daughter had once again been placed in the line on fire.

"$100,000 isn't a good enough reason?"

"There is more to life than money, Jake." Layla said pointedly.

"Not where I'm concerned."

They were silent for a longtime before Mike said. "Rule 51."

"What's that?" Jake asked.

"You remember those rules your parents came up with?"

Jake shrugged. He didn't want to talk about this. "Vaguely. I think it was mostly mom."

"After you left, she made her last rule, number 51."

"And that was?"

"Sometimes, you're wrong."

Mike's words hung in the air like fog and suddenly, Jake felt like a heel. All this time, he'd blamed his mother for pushing him away. It was the reason he hadn't called to say goodbye before he reported for SF training. He'd wanted to hurt her as much as she'd hurt him. But, as the years went by, he'd started to believe that maybe he'd been wrong and that he should have extended the olive branch. He thought about what Mike had said to him when they met at Charlies' a few days earlier_. If you die on one of these ops, you think the agency's gonna call your parents and say, 'oh, by the way, your son was killed while working for us.'_

And Jake knew he had to make it right. Because he was tired of being alone.

000

A/N: sorry this chapter's so short. I just needed something to lead up to 'the talk' between Jake and Shannon. So, I guess y'all know what the next chapter is gonna be.


	19. Forgiveness and Explanations

Chp. 19

Jake woke slowly from a surprisingly sound sleep, sat up and stretched. The team had arrived in Stillwater late the previous night. During the drive, Jake had called his grandfather and filled him in on Section Eight's current mission, then asked for the elder Gibbs help. Jackson had agreed on the spot, largely because of Tony and because he saw it as a way to repair the rift between his son, daughter-in-law and grandson.

Moving quietly so as not to wake his parent's and Tony, Jake retrieved his M4 rifle and went to the kitchen in search of coffee and hopefully breakfast. After stopping in the bathroom, he found a pot of fresh coffee, poured a cup and went to the back porch to relieve Dave who was standing watch.

The former SAS Operator turned as Jake opened the back door. "Morning."

"Morning; all quiet, I suppose?"

"Yeah," Dave said, yawning.

"Get some sleep; I've got this."

"Thanks, mate."

Dave went to the kitchen and found Shannon there getting coffee. "Morning, Dave."

He nodded. "Shannon."

"Have you seen Jake?"

"Yeah, he took my post out back."

She smiled. "Thanks."

"No problem." Dave said, watching her leave. _Good luck mate; I hope you know what you're in for. _

000

Jake glanced over his shoulder as the back door opened and was surprised to see his mother standing there. _Well, no time like the present. _

He turned around and purposely took along drink from his mug as Shannon sat down on a chair to his right. "So," he said, because he had to say something.

"How have you been, Jake?"

For several minutes, he didn't say anything. Finally able to find his voice, he said in a tone of disgust, "Twenty years and that's the best you can come up with?"

Shannon gave an exasperated sigh and glared at her son. "What do you want me to say, Jacob? That I lived in fear _every single day_ because I had no idea where you were or what you doing?" Shannon asked, tears now streaming down her face as old emotional wounds were ripped open.

Jake shook his head, "You obviously don't remember how it went down…" he started, ready to unleash the rage that had allowed him to become the near perfect killing machine that he was. But he stopped when she held up a placating hand.

"But having said that, I can understand why you felt Jackson was the only one you could turn to after the way Jethro and I treated you." She shook her head, "I can understand why you stayed away as long as you did."

Jake didn't answer for a few minutes. "I never blamed you for what you did. You were right; it was my fault."

A look of horror crossed Shannon's face and she pulled her son to her, hugging him hard. After several minutes, she spoke. "Jacob, I want you to listen to me. Your father and I don't blame you for what happened to Kelly. We never did, baby. We just didn't know how to deal with what happened. Do you understand?" she asked, looking up at him. Jake nodded, looking as if the weight of the world had been lifted from his shoulders.

"Then I guess I should tell you that I found the bastard who took Kelly from us."

Pulling back, Shannon wasn't sure she wanted to know this, but then decided that she did. _No more secrets._ "What did you do?" Shannon asked, even though she suspected she already knew the answer.

"You might want to sit down." He said, and when she did, he continued.

"Three years after I joined Delta, I got a copy of Kelly's autopsy report, and I had a friend in the FBI who owed me a favor run the prints found on her body. I got a match to a convicted child molester currently living in Las Vegas. I flew to Vegas using a fake i.d. Then I found and followed the target for a week. Once I learned his routine, I caught him by surprise when he was walking home from work; and I slit his throat. I left him in that alley and flew back to Fort Bragg that same night."

Five minutes passed before Shannon said anything. "What was his name?"

"Hector Ramirez. He'd been convicted of molester a five year old girl before he found Kelly."

Jake watched his mother's face and could tell that she didn't know how to feel about what he'd just told her. But before he could say anything, she stood and started inside. At the door she turned back to face him. "Thank you for telling me."

He nodded. "Not knowing was worse, I suppose."

"Yes, it was."

000

A/N: There you have it. The talk between Jake and Shannon. Hope it met your expectations.


	20. Delusions

Chp. 20

Jake stared out at the backyard for a long time after his mother left. He knew instantly from her reaction that he'd told her too much. It was stupid, but at the same time, he felt she needed to know that the son of a bitch who'd taken Kelly from them was dead. _Dead, yes. Not that you slit his throat, idiot._

But his mother's feelings about his actions weren't his problem. Jake didn't know if his plan to draw Dinozzo out would work. Based on what he knew about the man, he was just as likely to write Tony off as come in guns blazing and get him back. He felt that getting Dinozzo's daughter would be the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. But the problem was how to do that. He didn't like the idea of dividing his forces. That particular course of action never worked out well. Plus, the thought of having to deal with the kid until he got her back to Stillwater unsettled him. It wasn't that Jake didn't like kids; it was just that he wasn't comfortable with them. After two hours, a rough plan formed in his head. He just hoped it would work.

000

Anthony Dinozzo, Sr. was a man used to getting what he wanted. He always had been. He should've killed Tony that morning, he knew that now. But he'd thought those idiots wouldn't think anything was wrong. He figured they would believe the sniveling little brat was faking, just like all the other brats. He'd never loved his son, but what had pushed him over edge was the death of his wife. She had died in a car accident when Tony was two, ironically while taking Tony to the park. So, in Senior's mind, it was Tony's fault that his mother was dead.

His office door opening brought Dinozzo back to the present. He looked up as a man came to a stop in front of his large desk. "What did you find, Tyler?"

The man focused on the middle distance, just above Dinozzo's head. "The extraction team failed. Our intel on Gibbs was flawed."

"Deemings?" Dinozzo asked.

"Dead."

"What happened?"

In response, Tyler handed his boss a thin file. Dinozzo quickly skimmed it and looked up. "This isn't the teacher's husband's file."

"No, sir, he's her son, former Master Sargeant Jacob Gibbs, U.S. army. He's what happened to our team. Apparently, he's working with NCIS. Our satellites picked up the ambush in real time."

Dinozzo eyes were blazing at this point. "Tell me something good came out of it."

"After the attack, they left the safehouse and our satellites tracked them to Stillwater, Pennsylvania."

"Get a team together."

"Yes, Sir." Tyler said, turning to leave the office.

"And Tyler?"

Tyler stopped and turned. "Yes?"

"I want to oversee this operation personally."

"Understood, Sir."

000

A/N: Sorry for not updating in awhile. School took precedence. Also, I'm working on biographies for my OCs, the members of Section Eight. I will upload them to my profile as they are completed.


	21. The Second B

Chp. 21

In contrast to the morning, the rest of the day had passed uneventfully for team Gibbs and Section Eight. The two groups's rotated watches and Jake went off watch for the second time at 2015 hours. He entered the bedroom he was sharing with his parents and Tony quietly, and laid down on his rack, glad for a few hours of rest. _Sleep when you can, eat when you can, so you won't need to when you can't. _

Just as his eyes closed, the door opened and it occurred to Jake that no one had been in the bed when he'd come in. He lay there and pretended to be asleep. He heard what sounded two people lay down on the bed. His mother and Tony, he guessed. "Shannon?" Tony asked, confirming Jake's suspicion.

"Yeah, honey?"

"Is Jake gonna kill my dad?"

Jake felt his veins turn to ice and wondered if his mother knew he was in the room. Jake mentally cursed in five different languages. He was pissed, at his mother and at himself. Why hadn't he just told the agency no? It wasn't like they couldn't have found someone else to do the job. He could have, and most definitely should have he saw now, cited conflict of interest. It might not have worked, but he could've at least tried. He'd tried to convince Mike initially, but he let himself be swayed by his sense of loyalty to the man, and that was a mistake. Then, the more he'd learned about his team's target, the more he'd wanted Dinozzo Senior's head on a spit. From the little he'd seen, Tony was a good kid and he didn't deserve to be marginalized and have his self worth questioned by a self centered egotist of a father who only saw him as a piece of property.

Mere feet away, Shannon fought to control her emotions. She wanted to kill Dinozzo herself, mostly to give Tony peace and make a futile 'too little, too late' attempt to assuage her own guilt. But she wasn't naïve enough to think she had what it took to kill someone. In a life or death situation to protect herself or her family, yes, she could. But she pictured Dinozzo dying by her son's hand, Jake standing over him, gun extended in his hand, the bastard cursing or begging and Jake not caring and….

She stopped herself. She couldn't allow herself to think of the child she and Jethro had created thirty six years earlier and nurtured and watched grow and mature, as a cold blooded killer. She simply couldn't! Instead, she forced herself to focus on Tony and his needs.

"Tony, sweetheart, your daddy…" Shannon sighed. She didn't know how to explain this. It wasn't as simple as child abuse and neglect, she knew that. The government wouldn't have green lighted a hit on Dinozzo Senior using four highly trained killers for something that, and she hated how jaded this sounded in own mind, that mundane.

"Your dad's not a nice man, kid." Said the dark lump in the corner. Both Tony and Shannon jumped. As her eyes adjusted, Shannon watched a figure sit up and recognized her son.

"But I'm guessing you already knew that." Jake continued.

"Doesn't mean you have to kill him.." Tony said, and both adults could tell he was crying.

"You'll have to take that up with the U.S. Government, I'm afraid." Jake said, his tone surprisingly gentle.

"What'll happen to me?" Tony asked, and the wall around Jake's heart cracked just a bit and the plaintive request.

"I don't know. Sorry, Kid." Jake said. Suddenly feeling like a bastard, he stood and left the room, Tony's sobs assaulting his ears.

When his buddies had asked him what the second B in Gibbs stood for, he'd said Bastard and they'd all thought it was hilarious. So it had become a running joke for his team, both in Special Forces, Delta and even Section Eight.

But, suddenly, Jake found the joke decidedly less funny.

000

Jake found his way to the back porch and found Ziva on watch. He suddenly craved a smoke, but resisted the urge to light one. "You look like you have the pressure of the world on your shoulders."

He didn't both to correct her mistake. "You could say that. I was in the rack and Tony and mom came to bed. I was still awake, and Tony asked mom if I was going to kill his father."

"And did you respond?" She asked, and he nodded.

"I said that his father wasn't a nice man, but that I suspected he already knew that. Tony said that didn't mean I had to kill him and I said he'd have to take that up with the U.S. Government and then he asked what would happen to him. I said that I didn't know and I was sorry." Jake said and they stood in silence for a minute, Ziva waiting patiently for him to continue. "Did my Dad tell you what the second B in Gibbs stands for?"

"Bastard, but you…"

He cut her off. "Yes, I am, Ziva. Tony's father might be a traitor, a pedophile and a hundred other things that make him worthy of eating a bullet. But Tony didn't need to know that. I…"

But the rest of his statement was drowned out by Ziva's mouth closing over his and pressing down hard. It surprised him at first, but it had been so long and it felt so good that he just decided to go with it.

000

A/N: I've rewritten this chapter about ten times, ten different ways. Didn't like 'em. I liked this one. Let me know what y'all think, please.


	22. Emotions

Chp. 22

Jake had always believed that he had pretty good situational awareness, but he could honestly say he hadn't seen this coming. Well…that wasn't true. He felt an attraction toward Ziva from the first moment he saw her, but he was preoccupied with his parents and the mission and then there was the not so subtle fact that he'd pulled a gun on her. In retrospect, it was a stupid, emotionally inspired move.

And as long as his mind was on stupid and unprofessional moves, he replayed the conversation he'd had with Gibbs right before the safehouse had been attacked. The man said he was proud of him and all was forgiven? Yeah, right.

Jake knew that when Dinozzo Senior was killed, and he would be killed because Jake and co. wanted to get paid, the pendulum that was Leroy Jethro Gibbs would swing back to hatred toward him, largely because Tony would most likely see his father's death. Jake certainly wasn't going to concern himself with avoiding it. His mother had chosen to set them on a collision course because she couldn't leave well enough alone and now they would have to deal with the consequences.

Jake knew that he needed to stop letting his emotions rule him, do the job, get paid and fade away. That had been his original plan and he should've stuck to it. He pushed away from Ziva and stepped back. He saw just the briefest flicker of hurt on her face before her features were once again a mask and she stepped back. "That was unprofessional." She said and he simply nodded. Then the two lapsed into uncomfortable silence.

000

Anthony Dinozzo, Sr. speeding toward Stillwater, Pennsylvania in a convoy of four black SUV's that held thirty two of his best shooters. Dinozzo had been briefed on the NCIS team and Jacob Gibbs. He viewed both Gibbs men and Ziva David, formerly of Mossad, as the biggest obstacles to this operations success. They would be the challenge. The rest would be taken easily enough.

Sitting in the front passenger seat, he turned to the rear compartment and asked, "How long?"

His Intel man never looked up from the laptop in front of him. "Two hours, Sir."

Dinozzo smiled. He thought about Tom Sizemore's line from _Heat. "For me, the action is the juice." _

000

The McGee brothers were on watch in the front of the house while Ziva, and now Jake, were in back. The brother's had been close as children, but had drifted apart during their teenage years, as teenagers often do. Their career choices hadn't helped matters. Tim had spent years trying to prove himself as an NCIS agent in general and to Gibbs specifically and felt a sense of pride that he'd succeeded in both endeavors. But at the same time he felt that, as the elder brother, he should've been there for Travis more. Their father had been a career Navy man and Travis' decision to join the army right out of high school hadn't been received well, by either of their parents. But especially their father, who saw Travis', joining the Army as a personal betrayal. Personally, Tim thought his father was an idiot. Serving your country was still serving your country, regardless of what branch you chose. Given his job, Tim certainly felt he knew the difference between honorable and dishonorable service to one's country.

"Earth to Tim." Travis said, bringing McGee back to the present.

Tim shook his head. "Oh, sorry, what did you say, Travis?"

"I asked if you liked Abby, as more than a friend."

Tim grinned, because Travis didn't normally ask questions about relationships. "Well, yeah, maybe. Why do you ask?"

Travis shrugged. "Just examining my own mortally, I guess. We aren't going live forever, might as well be happy."

"And what about you?" Tim asked, turning the question back on his brother.

"We get a call about some bad people doing bad things, we drive or fly somewhere, bang bang no more bad guys then we go home and get paid."

"That's a little over simplified." Tim said, giving his brother a disapproving look.

Travis shrugged again. "Job's all consuming, ya know."

They lapsed into silence for several minutes before Travis said. "I just want you to be happy, bro."

Despite where they were and what they were doing, Tim smiled. It seemed to him that, even though he was the elder sibling, his and Travis' roles had been reversed. "Thanks, Travis. Same to you."

The former Green Beret nodded. "Anytime, bro."

000

Jake felt like a prick. In spite of his misgivings about pursuing a relationship and the fact that everything might blow in his face once the mission was over, Jake knew that on a deep level, he wanted this. Even though he knew that he had things to work through with his parents, and he wasn't sure how things would ultimately workout on that score, Jake knew one thing for certain. He didn't want to go home to an empty apartment, period. He was tired of being alone. So he turned and looked at Ziva, until she felt her eyes on him and she turned as well and raised an eyebrow in annoyance. "Yes, Jacob?"

"Well, it was one thing, now its two. Firstly, I've never been one to let what's professional dictate what I do and second, and definitely more important, it's just Jake." With that, he closed the distance and took her in his arms in a way that told Ziva this would most certainly be a lasting relationship.

000

A/N: I created biographies and posted them to my profile for the members of Section Eight if anyone is interested. Thanks you to everyone who supported me in writing this story so far! Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!


	23. Conflict, Part 1

A/N: 50 reviews! Thanks to everyone who's read, reviewed, favorite or alerted this story so far. You guys make it worth the effort!

A/N2: Spoilers for Truth and Consequences

Chp. 23

Gibbs could feel the anger radiating from his wife as he lay in bed, Tony between them. Thankfully the boy was asleep, and had a hold on Shannon's shirt. Every time she moved, Tony whimpered. The Gunny had a feeling that was the only thing keeping his wife from finding whoever had upset Tony and starting World War III all by herself. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, Gibbs met his wife's eyes and mouthed, 'What happened?'

'Jake.'

Gibbs rolled his eyes. What had his idiot son done now? At least that was the way he thought it worked. Every time Jake had done something stupid as a kid, Shannon had referred to him as 'your son'. Only then, she'd been half joking. Gibbs put the issue out of his mind for the time being forced himself to sleep.

000

As the sun was just coming over the horizon, Jake and Travis sat in one of the teams SUV's on the north edge of town. The watches had switched out at 0200 and both men, along with Max and Dave who were stationed on the southern approach to town, were running on three hours sleep. But Jake had an ulterior motive for going on sentry duty that had nothing to do with Anthony Dinnozzo, Sr. and everything to do with his own mother. He knew she'd be ready to chew him a new one for what he'd said to Tony and she had every right too.

"Hey, Jake, you want your head to explode?" Travis asked.

"No, why?"

"Because you think harder than any grunt I know."

Not wanting to hear it, Jake flipped his friend the bird and took another sip of coffee. Travis just laughed. "What are you thinking about, anyway?" He asked, just to make conversation as they watched the road.

Jake relayed the previous night's events, and Travis' eyes bugged in response. "Jeez, man, you know Shannon ain't the only one who'll want your head right?"

Jake, assuming his friend was talking about what he'd said to Tony and knowing that his father had a soft spot for children gave him a 'well, duh' look but Travis shook his head. "Nah, brother, I didn't mean that. I know you read up on the MCRT before this op, and I'm assuming that Ziva's file was in there as well." When Jake nodded, Travis continued.

"Well, what her file didn't say was that she captured during a mission in North Africa while working for Mossad after an agency snafu that terminated her liaison position. Didn't go well."

"And you're telling me this why?"

"I'm telling you because you're parents see her like a daughter. She lived with them for a while after it happened. She was…pretty messed up."

Jake was silent for a minute, processing what he'd just been told. When he spoke, there was an edge to his voice that told Travis all he needed to know. "Who did it?"

"Some jihadist prick named Saleem Ulman." Travis said.

"How would you feel about going off the books?" Jake asked and Travis simply shrugged.

"Thought we were off the books now. Anyway, what I'm saying is, you might wanna take it slow with Ziva. 'Cause if you hurt her, you're likely to end up floating face down in the Potomac."

Jake nodded in a way that said he'd already considered this. "I'll keep that in mind."

Before either man could say more, they saw a cloud of dust in the distance. Jake raised his binoculars and watched the dust cloud in. Travis started the engine and put the truck in gear. After a minute, Jake lowered the glasses and raised his radio to his mouth. "Target approaching. Fall back to rally point."

000

Mike and Jackson sat drinking coffee. "So, do you think Shannon will kill him?" Jackson asked.

Franks shrugged. "She's a mama bear, he's her cub." He said, referring to Tony.

"And Jake's the enemy." Jackson said, sadly.

Franks gave the elder Gibbs a hard stare. "That was their choice, Jackson."

"Yeah?" Jack asked, an edge in his voice that surprised Franks. The former NCIS agent waited patiently for the man to gather his thoughts. "Well, _their _choice drove him to do somethin' he didn't wanna do. Jake didn't want the military lifestyle. He wanted stability. He.." Jackson stopped suddenly when Franks raised his 1911 and pointed it over his shoulder. Before he could turn around and see who it was, the voice confirmed it.

"He never told me that."

Franks lowered his weapon and Jackson turned to face Shannon as she walked in. "I'm sorry, Shannon, I didn't mean…" Jackson started to say, but she cut him off viciously.

"You meant every word, Jackson." Shannon said in a harsh tone, and just she was preparing to delivery an equally devastating salvo, one of the black SUV's the team had traveled screeched to a stop in front of house, and Dave jumped out of the front passenger seat, running full tilt for the door. "What's up?" Mike asked as the man appeared in the doorway.

"We gotta bug out, now." He said, in a surprisingly calm tone. "Grab the rest of the civies and get in the vehicle."

Shannon and Mike moved to the bedrooms and Jackson started to follow, but Dave grabbed his arm. When the elder Gibbs turned, the former SAS operator asked, "Do you have any weapons here?"

"Just that Winchester." The elder man nodded toward the wall, walked over and grabbed the weapon.

"Does it work?" Dave asked and Jackson nodded.

"Take it with you." The elder Gibbs nodded in understanding.

"How many are coming?"

"32, at least."

"Can you boys take that many?" Jackson asked and Dave simply nodded in response. Jackson chuckled.

"Did I say something funny?"

"No, I was just laughing at an old man's stupidity, is all. Of course you can take them."

"How can you be so certain?"

"'Cause my grandson wouldn't serve with men who couldn't take everything thrown at them at and come up swinging."

Dave gave the old man a tight smile and nodded in response. "Well, there's something we can agree on."

Jackson was about the respond when the team returned with Mike's family and Tony. "Ok, Gibbs, I want you and you're team to go with Franks and company and bug out with Max."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at being given orders by a man he clearly didn't work for. But Dave hurried them out to the vehicle and climbed in the front passenger seat. He keyed the his radio. "Convoy one, moving."

Jake's voice came back a second later. _"Roger."_

Dave and Max quickly crossed themselves, and Dave said in a quiet voice that only Shannon who was sitting right behind him heard, "Father, forgive me for the men I have killed and for those I am about to."

000

Jake sprinted back to the SUV from the road, when he'd placed a metal spike strip that the convoy would hopefully pass over. As he climbed back in the truck, Travis turned to his boss. "You ready for this?"

Jake grinned. "Born ready."

They watched as the SUV's came into view. "Let's do it then."


	24. Conflict, Part 2

Chp. 24

"What's the plan, boss?" Max asked, a bluetooth hands free earpiece allowing him to drive and talk at the same time.

"_Keep going. Convoy three and I will thin out the herd." Jake's voice came over the trucks speakers. _

"On your own? Thirty-two on two is long odds, even for us snake eaters."

A short pause followed, then Jake responded with an edge in his voice. _"Do I have to make that an order, Senior Chief?" _

"No, boss. Good luck."

"_You, too." _

Mike leaned forward. "You're just good leave 'em? Doesn't seem very loyal."

"Eat me, Jarhead." Max said, taking a hard right turn onto a side road and jostling everyone in the vehicle.

000

"Ready?" Jake asked, his Springfield Amory M21 sniper rifle's bipod resting on the hood of the SUV.

"Ready." Travis said from behind the rear of the vehicle. He was armed with an M249 Squad Automatic Weapon, also known as a SAW.

Jake waited patiently as the vehicles came into view, taking a slight lead on the lead trucks right front tire. He took up the trigger slack and gentle applied pressure until the weapon coughed. Both men watched as seconds later, the truck skewed around on the road from the sudden shock of the complete loss of one tire. The second SUV swerved to avoid a collision, as did the third and fourth. Men spilled from the vehicles as soon as they stopped, setting up a perimeter and, surprisingly, covering their principle. It appeared they were not only tasked with recovering Tony, but also protecting Dinozzo, Sr. _Self bastard, Jake thought. _

Both men wanted to take out Dinozzo and leave his bodyguards alive. But Jake and Travis also believed, based on what they had just witnessed, that these men knew what their boss had done to Tony. And they'd done nothing about it. That alone signed their death warrants.

"Go loud." Jake said, and a second later he heard the familiar and oddly comforting bark of the SAW.

Travis forced the opposition behind cover as Jake systematically shredded their tires. Seeing that all four vehicles right side tires were destroyed, Jake put the next part of his plan in motion. "GO!" He shouted to Travis to be heard over the gunfire, and reloaded his rifle. Travis, hefting the heavy machine gun, stood and continued firing as he moved to the driver's side of the truck. As soon as he stopped firing, Jake emptied his magazine in the direction of the vehicles. When he heard Travis's Sig Sauer P220 .45 pistol firing, he picked up his rifle, tossing it unceremoniously onto the rear seat and threw his body inside yelling, "GO!" As they were both now somewhat deaf. Travis already had the transmission in drive and pushed the accelerator into the floor even before Jake was fully in the vehicle. Surprisingly, they didn't take any fire from the Dinozzo or his goon's.

000

"_Convoy 2, this is Convoy 1, come in?"_

"1, this is 2, go ahead."

"_Managed to screw up the opposition pretty good, where are you?" _

Max checked his personal GPS and texted the coordinates to Jake's phone in response to his boss' question. He turned to the others, told them to stay in the truck and stepped out. He pulled a pack of Marlboros and an old brass lighter with the Navy Seal trident on one side and _Good Luck, bro! Love, Abby_ on the other, from one of the pockets on his tactical vest and lit a cigarette. He took a long pull on the cancer stick and enjoyed the warm feeling that radiated through his body. He heard the door open next to him and turned to see Mike step from the truck. "Thought I told you to stay in the vehicle."

"Got anymore of those?"

Max held out the pack and Franks took one. After lighting it, he took a long drag then asked, "What's your plan?"

"Now that the opposition's on foot, we'll hunt them. One by one."

Before Mike could give his opinion on the merits, or lack thereof, of this plan, the other SUV pulled up behind theirs and parked. Jake walked to the right rear passenger door, yanked it open and said, "Agents, out. Civies stay put."

After the door shut, Layla turned to Shannon. "Is he always like that?"

Before Shannon could respond, Camilla jumped in. "Pretty much. Gibbs men don't know the meaning of the word 'tact'." Then realizing Jackson was in the rear seat, She turned to him, an apology on her face. "At least, not those two."

He nodded. "That's true enough. Wouldn't you agree, Shannon?"

Having been married to Leroy Jethro Gibbs for almost forty years, Shannon didn't have to consider this question. Despite their present situation, or maybe because of it, she smiled and nodded. "Yeah, it's true."

Dave opened the front passenger door and climbed out to join his boss and the NCIS agents outside. Tony seemed to be watching the group outside intently and Shannon reflected on their conversation from the night before. The memory made her want to go and give her son a piece of her mind about what he had said to Tony.

Tony looked at her and Shannon forced herself to smile. "Shannon, can I ask you a question?"

"What is it, honey?"

"What's gonna happen to me when Jake kills my dad?"

Shannon felt deep sadness at Tony's resigned tone. It was like he'd made peace with what was going to happen and, while she knew that wasn't true, she decided to go with it for the time being. "What do you want to happen, sweetheart?"

Tony looked surprised that she cared about what he thought, but then this was Mrs. Gibbs after all and she was nice. "Can I stay with you and Jethro?"

Even though the professional in her screamed with every fiber to say no and mean it, one look at Tony and the mother in Shannon simply couldn't live with herself if she said no. "Yeah, you can stay with us."

Tony didn't respond verbally, instead throwing his arms around Shannon and hugging her tight. Shannon, for her part, returned the hug as if her life depended on it. And in some small way, she knew it did.

000

Anthony Dinozzo, Sr. was pissed. At the people who had his son and at himself for allowing them to get the drop on him and his men. It was stupid. But, at least they'd left him alive to rectify his mistake. That was their mistake, and he would make sure they paid for it. In blood.

"Sir, do you want us to go after them?"

"No, set up a perimeter. We need to think this through. These aren't stupid men we're tracking."

"Yes, sir."

000


	25. Conflict, Part 3

Chp. 25

Jake waited while all the NCIS agents got out of the truck and joined him and his men outside the vehicle. This was the part of the mission he'd secretly been hoping to avoid. He would have to lay down the law to these people, whose first priority would be to arrest DiNozzo Sr. and his men.

But there wouldn't be any arrests, trials or conviction. Well…that wasn't entirely true. If you counted the bullet each of the opposition would receive as a conviction. But these law and order types were funny around people like him. He knew that his father and Ziva would understand, but Kate and McGee would be the tough sell. Jake was just glad that neither of them were in charge.

Gibbs spoke first, cutting to the heart of the discussion as was his habit. "What's your plan?"

"Travis and I disabled DiNozzo's transportation, so unless they can come up with a vehicle, their on foot. Sneak attacks and ambushes are the order of the day." Jake answered.

"Until?"

Jake wasn't surprised that Kate had spoken. He rolled his eyes in annoyance. People with badges and covert ops were like oil and water.

"Until we kill them all, agent Todd."

"What do you want us to do?" Gibbs asked, before the conversation could descend into Jake and Kate going back and forth debating what was right and was wasn't. He personally didn't care what happened to DiNozzo, sr., as long as Tony was safe. If the man died, so much the better.

"Keep Tony and the other civilians out of the line of fire."

"Thirty-two on four is pretty long odds, even for you boys." Mike said.

Jake nodded and looked at Ziva. "Think you could help even the odds, Ziva? That is, if you haven't lost a step by becoming a paper pusher." He said with a grin to let her know he was kidding.

Ziva gave the mercenary the Mossad version of the Gibbs stare. "No, I have not 'lost a step', Jake."

"Ok then, grab your gear and come with us." Jake finished and turned to walk back to their truck.

Ziva turned to back to see Abby with a huge grin on her face. She couldn't help herself. "What is so amusing, Abby?"

"You, Jake, I think it's cute."

"Actually," McGee interjected. "I have another word for it, scary."

Ziva thought about her friends' description of Jake's attraction to her and laughed. "You are both impossible."

000

Dinozzo, Sr. was not a happy man. Of course, happiness was an emotion that he rarely felt anyway, but that was beside the point. The current reason for his foul mood was his son. To put it simply, the boy was weak and he always had been. Sr.'s wife, Maureen had believed that the boy needed to be given everything he wanted and showered with love. All that had served to do was disgust Senior further.

One of his men walked up, a black thirty something former Force Recon Marine named Burns. Dinozzo turned and looked at him. "Report."

"Tire tracks indicate they went west. Satellite imagery shows that the SUV that attacked us linked up with another SUV, containing ten people."

"Any details?" Senior asked.

"Nothing other than the fact that the images are human."

Senior grinned. _Perfect. _"Round up the crew. We're going after 'em."

Burns smiled and nodded. "Yes, sir."

000

Jake finished wiring the last M18A1 claymore mine and moved back to the lay-up position he was sharing with Ziva. She noticed that he had a bounce in his step, his eyes were bright. "Are you enjoying this?" Ziva asked.

Jake shrugged. "You aren't?"

"We are going to kill them." Ziva said, as if speaking to a child.

"Well, duh. But you've got to admit there's a certain satisfaction in taking the lives of men who were complacent in the abuse and molestation of a seven year old child."

Ziva thought for a moment before answering. In Mossad, she'd been trained to think of the mission and _only _the mission. But her time with team Gibbs had changed her, she knew. At first, she felt that it weakened her, made her vulnerable. But now, Ziva understood that she may have regained some of the humanity she always felt she lacked during her time in Mossad.

"Yes, you are right."

Before Jake could say more, their radio clicked twice. That was Travis' signal that he and Dave had spotted Dinozzo and his men headed their way. Jake smiled. Act I was about to begin.

000

At the last minute, Jake had asked his father to partner up with Max since he would be with Ziva. That way they would have three two man position, and be about to come at the enemy from three sides. But Tony hadn't liked the fact that Jethro was leaving. In the end, Jake had promised Tony that nothing would happen to Gibbs. But Jake, who considered himself a hard man, wasn't prepared for what the little boy said next or how it affected him.

"You gotta come back too, Jake." Tony said, with all the seriousness a seven year old could muster.

"Sure, kid." Jake said, turning to walk away.

But it was what Tony said next that seemed to chip away at the wall Jake spent the last twenty years building around his heart. Running up and grabbing his hand, Tony pulled until the man stopped and said, with tears rolling down his face. "No, you gotta mean it! You gotta come back and be my big brother and stay so Shannon won't be sad anymore 'cause you're not there." Tony said, solemnly.

Jake sighed. This kid was going to be the death of him, he was sure of it. He knelt down and placed his hands on Tony's shoulders. "Ok, kid, I promise. I'll come back."

Tony nodded, turned and ran back to where Shannon was standing. As he stood, Jake caught his mother's eye and she mouthed, 'thank you.'

His only response was a curt nod as he turned and walked away. But when they were far enough away that the others could hear, Jethro fixed his son with his patent stare and said, "If you lied to him about coming back, Dinozzo won't get the chance to kill you. I'll do it myself, regardless of the fact you're my son. We clear?"

Jake had to give his father credit. Even though he wanted to repair their relationship, he put Tony's best interest ahead of what they wanted. Even if it included threatening to blow Jake's head off. "Yeah, Gunny. We're clear."

000

Jake put these thoughts out of his head for the time being. He heard an explosion further up the road where Dave and Travis were. That was the lead truck being taken out, hopefully. At worst it was only disabled and the occupants were alive and in fighting shape. At best, the truck was destroyed and its occupants were dead. Seconds later, he heard gunfire and from his men's position, then at almost the same time he heard return fire. Then an RPG was fired from Gibb's and Max's position. _"Boss, the opposition isn't as dumb as we hoped." _Travis said into his radio.

"Yeah, how so?"

"_They salvaged two of their trucks." _

"That's what I figured. How many left?"

"_Nine." _

"Good work. Is Dinozzo alive?"

"_Yeah." _

"Tighten the perimeter. Let's see if we can't even the odds a bit more."

Jake could almost hear the satisfaction in Travis' voice when he responded. _"Roger; moving." _

"Max, Gunny, cover our rear. Moving." Jake said as he stood and moved in a crouch, Ziva right behind.

000

A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger. Looking like one, maybe two more chapters to wrap this story up. I'm considering making this story the start of a series. Opinions would be appreciated.


	26. Conflict, Part 4

Chp. 26

As Jake and Ziva moved to flank Dinozzo Sr. and his remaining men, Gibbs and the rest of Section Eight pounded the opposition with lead. Another man fell and suddenly Dinozzo and his men stopped firing. The rest of Section Eight did likewise, and Jake stopped, holding up a closed fist to silently signal Ziva to stop. Then each side waited for the other to make the first move in an eerie silence. Finally, Dinozzo, Sr. spoke, "Gibbs, you're a Federal Agent! Surely you realize that is illegal and I'm very well connected. I could ruin all of you with one phone call!" Jake waited and hoped his father wouldn't take the bait, but he doubted it. Sure enough, the silence lingered. Until Dinozzo started again, this time offering to let the team walk away alive in exchange for Tony.

Jake started forward again when he realized what Dinozzo could be doing. Get your enemy focused on negotiation, then flank them. Jake couldn't see his team, but he knew they were covering every side of their perimeter to prevent Dinozzo from flanking them. As they reached the end of the tree line he and Ziva were using for cover, Jake stopped again. Using the tree to steady his rifle, Jake flipped up the sights for his M203 grenade launcher. Glancing to his left he saw Ziva kneeling, the RPG-7 she carried on her shoulder and ready to fire. Without taking his eyes off the target, he put his right hand in front of her, all five fingers extended. Having discussed this move before they'd even set up their original position, he didn't bother explaining. Instead, he counted down on his fingers, forming a fist when he reached zero and moving his hand away. Seconds passed before he heard the _whoosh _of the RPG leaving its launcher and Jake squeezed the trigger on his M203, sending a High Explosive 40mm round into the front grill of the lead SUV. The trucks exploded almost in unison as the rear vehicle was hit low in the side and the explosion lifted it into the air and flipped the truck on its side. After being penetrated by the 40mm grenade the engine block of the lead truck exploded, the vehicle caught moments later. Jake stayed in position, waiting patiently. A man dressed in tactical gear and clutching an MP-5 submachine gun to his chest, crawled from the smoldering wreckage, followed by Anthony Dinozzo, Sr.

Jake moved toward them, Ziva wordlessly following him, her Sig Sauer at the ready. He stopped and looked at the man with Dinozzo. "Did you know?"

"Know what?" the man asked, his voice weak.

"Who your boss was." Jake said, pointing his carbine at Dinozzo, who was surprisingly quiet.

"Yeah, I knew. What do you care?"

"Did you…participate?" Ziva asked, her Sig pointed at the man's head.

"Yeah, but…." He started, but was cut off when Ziva put two rounds into his forehead.

They both looked down at Dinozzo, and for the first time, he experienced real fear. "Come on, man, I had needs. My wife was dead and…"

"You're telling me that because your wife died and you needed sex, you turned to you son, you stupid prick!" Jake yelled. He didn't care who heard, he was too pissed.

"What do you care? He's not your kid."

Jake actually considered the question for a few seconds, then answered. "No, he's not my kid. He's my brother."

Dinozzo's eyes widened in horror as he realized the man was indeed going to kill him. "No...wait…I…" the sentence was drowned out as Jake emptied his magazine into Dinozzo's head. It was overkill, he knew. But it felt good, just the same.

000


	27. That's a Wrap

Chp. 27

Jake sighed, ejected the spent magazine and reloaded his M4. "What happens now?" Ziva asked, because she suddenly felt she had to say something.

"The hard part."

"Is that not what we just did?" she asked, surprised.

"Nah," Jake said, shaking his head. "That was the easy part. Living with _them_; that's the hard part."

"How do you mean? You called Tony your brother, and you are going back with them, yes?"

Jake was more interested in the question Ziva hadn't asked. _Where are we?_

"And as far as you and me, I'm in no rush, Ziva."

To his surprise, she gave him a small smile. "Neither am I, Jake. I hope that I didn't give you the wrong impression last night."

"No, Ziva. Do you mind taking the civilian's back to Stillwater?"

"I will be happy to." Ziva said and headed to where Gibbs and the team were standing guard duty.

000

Jake and the rest of Section Eight spent the rest of the day and night policing the area. Jake didn't know how he did it, but Jack managed to find a backhoe for rent and brought it back, along with Gibbs. The two men offered to help and were surprised when Jake took them up on it. As the sun was coming up over the trees, Travis deposited the last bucketful of dirt into the hole. Then he turned the machine off, stepped down and stretched. He walked over to where Jake, Gibbs, Jackson and the rest of his team were standing, drinking coffee.

"Well, that was fun. What's next, boss, cow tipping?"

Jake glared and handed his teammate a cup of coffee. "Three weeks R&R."

"I like the sound of that." Max said with a grin.

"Amen." Dave added, and turned to the NCIS agent. "Speaking of R&R, I was thinking of asking Kate to go away for a weekend so…"

"Sure Dave, take a week."

The former SAS man grinned wolfishly but stopped when he caught the Gunny glaring at him. As the others moved away to collect their gear, Jack walked back to his truck, leaving Jake and Jethro standing alone. "And you, what's your plan?"

"I'm thinking of moving."

"Anyplace in particular?"

"I hear Virginia's nice."

Gibbs considered what his son had just said for a long time before answering. Finally, he asked. "Why the change of heart?"

"'Cause I'm tired, Gunny."

When it was clear Jake wasn't going to elaborate, Gibbs asked, "Of what?"

"Being alone. Having nothing but the mission."

"I never took you for somebody to need anything _but _the mission, Jake."

Jake chuckled and sipped his coffee. "Me neither. Then I met Ziva."

"Just be careful, Jake. I don't want to see either of you hurt."

Jake nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah, Travis told me about Saleem Ulman." Jake said, anger in his voice.

"You sound like you're planning to do something about him."

Jake took another sip of coffee and looked at Gibbs. "That's the plan."

"You need any help moving?" Gibbs asked as they walked to the vehicles.

Jake recognized that Gibbs was further extending the olive branch. "Yeah,Dad, I'd like that." He said, climbing in the truck.

000

A/N: Well gang, that's a wrap. Thanks for all the reviews, alerts, favorites, encouraging PMs etc. I've got the some school stuff during the next couple of weeks, but then I'll start work on the sequel.


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